Honduras President Claims ‘Electoral Coup’ Amid US Interference

Honduras’s president, Xiomara Castro, has accused the United States of orchestrating an “electoral coup” during the ongoing presidential election process in the country. Castro’s allegations come as the vote count continues to experience significant delays and technical issues following the elections held on November 30, 2023. She stated that the situation has been marred by “interference” from former US President Donald Trump.

During a press conference, Castro emphasized that “the Honduran people must never accept elections marked by interference, manipulation and blackmail.” She asserted that the principles of sovereignty and democracy are non-negotiable. As of the latest updates, the electoral council’s website has faced repeated outages, causing frustration among voters and candidates alike.

With 99.4 percent of tally sheets counted, right-wing candidates Nasry “Tito” Asfura and Salvador Nasralla are in a tight race. Asfura leads with 40.52 percent of the vote, while Nasralla follows closely at 39.48 percent, a difference of approximately 42,000 votes. Asfura, a construction magnate and former mayor of Tegucigalpa, received explicit support from Trump, who suggested that the US would only recognize the next government if Asfura emerged victorious.

Trump’s involvement escalated on the eve of the election when he granted a pardon to former president Juan Orlando Hernández, who had been sentenced to 45 years in prison for allegedly facilitating drug trafficking into the United States. Hernández, a key ally of Asfura, was released from prison just last week.

In her remarks, Castro condemned Trump for threatening the Honduran electorate, particularly those who chose to support the Liberal party candidate, Rixi Moncada. Moncada, who was selected by Castro to run in her place due to constitutional restrictions on re-election, is currently in third place with 19.29 percent of the preliminary results. Trump had previously described her as a communist, claiming her victory would align Honduras with the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro.

Castro declared that Trump’s rhetoric “violated the most sacred principle of our constitution,” asserting that sovereignty resides solely with the Honduran people. She also criticized the release of Hernández, stating, “Conservatives in Washington have decided to ally themselves with drug trafficking and organised crime.” Hernández was convicted in a US court last year, with allegations suggesting that under his administration from 2014 to 2022, Honduras became a major transit point for cocaine.

Following Hernández’s release, Honduran attorney general Johel Zelaya, a supporter of Castro’s government, ordered the execution of an international arrest warrant for Hernández, whose location remains unknown.

As the election continues, Castro accused the process of being tainted with “threats, coercion, manipulation of the TREP [the results transmission system], and the adulteration of the popular will.” She did not provide concrete evidence to support her claims. The president announced plans to bring these allegations before international bodies such as the United Nations, European Union, Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, and the Organisation of American States for further scrutiny.

In a parallel response, Nasralla alleged that a “monumental fraud” was underway, demanding a detailed recount of the votes “tally sheet by tally sheet.” In response to the ongoing tensions, electoral council president Ana Paola Hall stated, “I cannot tamper with the results, neither to help nor to harm anyone – and you know something, even if I could, I still wouldn’t.”

Despite Asfura’s lead, approximately 14.5 percent of the tally sheets have raised concerns due to inconsistencies that require further review. The electoral council is expected to announce the official results by December 30, 2023. As these events unfold, the political landscape in Honduras remains charged, with the potential for significant ramifications on both domestic and international fronts.