🔗 Share this article Presidential Candidate Claims Vote Has Been 'Stolen' The atmosphere has been tense as the lead changed hands several times. The moderate candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has alleged "unscrupulous individuals" of manipulating the vote count in the Central American nation. Nine days after the election, the election authority has yet to announce a winner, but the most recent tally suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the right-wing contender backed by US President Donald Trump, holds a slim advantage. Nasralla, who had been leading earlier on before falling to second place, declared on social media: "This is a robbery." The left-wing candidate placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has demanded the vote to be annulled and accused Trump of the election. Close Results and Growing Unrest With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had just over forty percent of the vote, ahead of Nasralla with under forty percent and Moncada with just under twenty percent, according to the National Electoral Council's (CNE) update. Patience has worn thin 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 dominated by Trump's endorsement of Nasry "Tito" Asfura. Just days 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 we will not be throwing good money after bad, because a poor choice can only bring disastrous outcomes," Trump added. In a surprise move two days before the election, Trump also granted clemency to jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who stems from the same party as Asfura. Hernández was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for trafficking cocaine. His clemency and freedom has shocked Honduran authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who is still in the US. Mounting Tensions and Allegations 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 overtook Asfura early on. "If they do, there will be hell to pay," the US president said without offering proof of any fraud. Since the moment the Trump-endorsed Asfura moved in 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 "meddling and pressure of the President of the United States." Nasralla pointed the finger at unnamed "corrupt ones" for "delaying the counting process." According to the nation's regulations, the CNE has until 30 December to announce a victor.