Nasry Asfura, the conservative candidate endorsed by United States President Donald Trump, has taken a slim early lead in Honduras’ presidential race as initial results begin to roll in. With around 40 percent of ballots counted, Asfura of the National Party is currently polling at 41 percent.
His closest rival, Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party, is trailing slightly with 39 percent, while Rixi Moncada of the ruling LIBRE party follows in third place with 20 percent. The tight contest comes just days after Trump made a bold intervention, publicly urging Hondurans to back Asfura and warning that Washington would not support a government that “throws good money after bad.”
The outspoken support mirrors Trump’s earlier interventions in Argentina’s elections and has added fuel to an already tense political atmosphere. Ahead of the vote, he also vowed to pardon former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández — from Asfura’s party — who is serving a 45-year sentence in the United States for drug trafficking and weapons offenses.
As campaigns closed, the three major candidates repeatedly accused one another of plotting electoral fraud, prompting Ana Paola Hall, head of the National Electoral Council, to caution against inflaming tensions. Security and jobs remain top concerns for Hondurans, as the country grapples with drug-related violence and unemployment. Despite improvements under President Xiomara Castro, Honduras still has the highest homicide rate in Central America.
