🔗 Share this article Presidential Candidate Alleges Vote Has Been 'Stolen' The atmosphere has been tense as the lead changed hands several times. The centrist candidate in Honduras's knife-edge presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has accused "unscrupulous individuals" of manipulating the vote count in the country. 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 conservative candidate endorsed by US President Donald Trump, holds a narrow lead. Nasralla, who had been leading earlier on before dropping into second place, stated on social media: "They have stolen it." The progressive hopeful placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has demanded the vote to be annulled and alleged US interference by Trump in the election. Close Results and Growing Unrest With 98.77% of votes counted, Asfura had just over forty percent of the vote, leading 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 was repeatedly halted, sometimes for extended periods. Representatives of the CNE attributed the delays to "IT issues." They have also cautioned that thousands of voting records with "irregularities" still need to be reviewed. Trump's Backing and Controversial Pardon The period preceding the election was overshadowed by Trump's support for Nasry "Tito" Asfura. Just days before the vote, Trump backed the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, saying that "Tito and I can work together to fight the Narcocommunists." "Our support will be strong should Asfura win, but the United States 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 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 pardon and subsequent release has stunned Honduran authorities, who have issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who remains in the US. Rising Tensions and Allegations of Meddling 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 moved in 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 called on 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 "bad actors" for "holding up the counting process." Under Honduran law, the CNE has until 30 December to announce a victor.