🔗 Share this article Presidential Contender Alleges Vote Has Been 'Stolen' The atmosphere has been tense as the lead changed hands several times. The centrist candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has accused "corrupt people" 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 latest results suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the right-wing contender backed by US President Donald Trump, holds a narrow lead. Nasralla, who had been leading earlier on before falling to second place, stated on social media: "This is theft." The left-wing candidate placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has called for the vote to be annulled and accused Trump of the election. Close Results and Growing Unrest With the vast majority of votes counted, Asfura had 40.53% of the vote, leading Nasralla with under forty percent and Moncada with just under twenty percent, per the National Electoral Council's (CNE) update. Patience has worn thin over the last week as the counting was repeatedly halted, sometimes for days on end. Officials from the CNE blamed "system glitches." They have also cautioned that thousands of voting records with "discrepancies" still need to be examined. Trump's Endorsement and Surprise Pardon The run-up to the election was overshadowed by Trump's endorsement of Nasry "Tito" Asfura. Just days before the vote, Trump threw his weight behind the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, stating that "We can work together to fight the drug traffickers." "We will be very supportive should Asfura win, but the United States will not be wasting resources, because a poor choice can only bring catastrophic results," Trump added. In a surprise move two days before the election, Trump also granted clemency to jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who is from the same party as Asfura. Hernández was in the midst of a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine. His clemency and freedom has shocked Honduran authorities, who have issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who remains in the US. Mounting Tensions and Claims of Interference Meanwhile, the situation has grown more tense as the lead in the vote count changed a number of times. Trump accused the CNE of "trying to change" the outcome when Nasralla pulled past Asfura early on. "They will face severe consequences," the US president said without providing evidence of any fraud. Ever since the Trump-endorsed Asfura took the lead, it has been his two rivals alleging misconduct. Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "complete cancellation" 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 "corrupt ones" for "delaying the counting process." Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to declare a winner.