🔗 Share this article Presidential Contender Alleges Vote Has Been 'Stolen' Tensions have run high as the lead changed hands several times. The moderate candidate in Honduras's knife-edge presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has alleged "corrupt people" of tampering with the vote count in the Central American nation. Nine days after the election, the election authority has still not declared a winner, but the latest results suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the conservative candidate endorsed 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 theft." The progressive hopeful trailing in third, Rixi Moncada, has called for the vote to be invalidated and alleged US interference by Trump in the election. Narrow Results and Growing Unrest With the vast majority of votes counted, Asfura had just over forty percent of the vote, leading Nasralla with under forty percent and Moncada with 19.32%, per the National Electoral Council's (CNE) update. Patience has worn thin over the last week as the counting stalled several times, sometimes for extended periods. Representatives of the CNE blamed "technical problems." They have also warned that numerous voting records with "discrepancies" still need to be examined. Trump's Endorsement and Controversial Pardon The run-up to the election was overshadowed by Trump's support for Nasry "Tito" Asfura. Just days before the vote, Trump threw his weight behind the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, saying that "We can work together to fight the drug traffickers." "Our support will be strong should Asfura win, but the United States will not be wasting resources, 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 is from the same party as Asfura. Hernández was in the midst of a 45-year prison sentence in the US for trafficking cocaine. His clemency and freedom has stunned Honduran authorities, who have issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who is still in the US. Mounting Tensions and Allegations of Meddling At the same time, tension has been rising as the lead in the vote count fluctuated repeatedly. Trump claimed the CNE of "seeking to alter" the outcome when Nasralla overtook Asfura early on. "They will face severe consequences," the US president said without offering proof 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 called on its supporters to take to the streets against what it called "meddling and pressure of the President of the United States." Nasralla blamed unnamed "bad actors" for "holding up the counting process." Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to announce a victor.