Honduras electoral authorities rejected on Monday an order by the outgoing president to recount November’s election won by Trump-backed candidate Nasry Asfura.
Asfura, a conservative businessman, was declared the winner of Honduras’s presidential election on December 24, weeks after a tight race marred by delays and allegations of fraud.
Outgoing Honduras President Xiomara Castro, who finishes her term January 27, called for a meeting with Trump last week saying his public backing of Asfura “negatively influenced” the election and demanded a vote recount.
The head of the National Electoral Council (CNE), which oversees elections in Honduras, said in a statement on social media on Monday that the recount decree was “unconstitutional and illegal”, adding that it attempted to “usurp” the electoral body’s independence.
The US State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs also warned on Saturday that “attempts to illegally overturn Honduras’s election will have serious consequences”.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Asfura in Washington on Monday where they discussed “the importance of combating transnational crime, strengthening regional security, attracting new investment opportunities, and ending illegal immigration,” the State Department said.
Asfura, a 67-year-old son of Palestinian immigrants, narrowly defeated conservative TV personality Salvador Nasralla, 40.1 per cent to 39.5 per cent in the presidential contest.
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