🔗 Share this article Honduran Candidate Claims Vote Has Been 'Rigged' Tensions have run high as the lead changed hands several times. 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. Nine days after the election, the electoral council has still not declared 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 dropping into second place, stated on social media: "They have stolen it." The progressive hopeful placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has called for the vote to be annulled and alleged US interference by Trump in the election. Close Results and Growing Frustration With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had 40.53% of the vote, ahead of Nasralla with under forty percent 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 days on end. Officials from the CNE attributed the delays to "system glitches." They have also cautioned that thousands of voting records with "discrepancies" still need to be reviewed. Trump's Endorsement and Controversial Pardon The period preceding the election was overshadowed by Trump's support for Nasry "Tito" Asfura. Shortly before the vote, Trump backed the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, saying that "We can work together to fight the Narcocommunists." "Our support will be strong 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 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 in the midst of a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine. His pardon and subsequent release has shocked Honduran authorities, who have issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who remains in the US. Mounting Tensions and Allegations of Interference Meanwhile, tension has been rising as the lead in the vote count fluctuated repeatedly. Trump accused the CNE of "seeking to alter" the outcome when Nasralla overtook Asfura early on. "If they do, there will be hell to pay," 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 crying foul. Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "complete cancellation" of the elections. It also called on its supporters to take to the streets against what it called "the interference and coercion of the President of the United States." Nasralla pointed the finger at unnamed "corrupt ones" for "holding up the counting process." Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to declare a winner.