Presidential Contender Alleges Election Has Been 'Stolen'
The centrist candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has alleged "unscrupulous individuals" of tampering with the vote count in the country.
Over a week after the election, the election authority has yet to announce a winner, but the most recent tally suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the conservative candidate backed by US President Donald Trump, holds a slim advantage.
Nasralla, who had been ahead in the initial stages before falling to second place, stated on social media: "This is a robbery."
The progressive hopeful placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has demanded the vote to be invalidated and accused Trump of the election.
Close Results and Growing Frustration
With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had just over forty percent of the vote, ahead of Nasralla with 39.16% and Moncada with just under twenty percent, according to the election body's update.
Frustration has been growing over the last week as the counting stalled several times, sometimes for extended periods.
Officials from the CNE blamed "IT issues."
They have also cautioned that thousands of voting records with "irregularities" still need to be examined.
Trump's Backing and Controversial Pardon
The run-up to the election was dominated by Trump's support for Nasry "Tito" Asfura.
Shortly before the vote, Trump backed the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, stating that "Tito and I can work together to fight the drug traffickers."
"Our support will be strong should Asfura win, but the United States will not be throwing good money after bad, because a poor choice can only bring disastrous outcomes," Trump added.
In a unexpected action two days before the election, Trump also pardoned jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who stems from the same party as Asfura.
Hernández was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine.
His pardon and subsequent release has shocked Honduran authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who is still in the US.
Mounting Tensions and Allegations of Meddling
Meanwhile, the situation has grown more tense as the lead in the vote count changed a number of times.
Trump claimed the CNE of "trying to change" the outcome when Nasralla overtook Asfura early on.
"They will face severe consequences," the US president said without providing evidence of any fraud.
Since the moment the Trump-endorsed Asfura took the lead, it has been his two rivals alleging misconduct.
Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "the total annulment" of the elections.
It also urged its supporters to protest publicly against what it called "meddling and pressure of the President of the United States."
Nasralla pointed the finger at unnamed "bad actors" for "delaying the counting process."
Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to announce a victor.
