Opposition leader leads to “massive” turnout in Honduran elections Election News

The initial results of the Honduran presidential election showed that opposition candidate Xiomara Castro had a clear advantage over the conservative party Nasry Asfura, with both sides winning victory after the polls closed on Sunday.

Counting with more than 16 percent of the vote, Castro had 53.4 percent of the vote, while Asfura had 34 percent, according to the National Electoral Council.

If she wins opposition standards, she would be the first female president of Honduras and the left would return to power for the first time since her husband, former president Manuel Zelaya, was ousted in a 2009 coup.

The Electoral Council said earlier that more than 2.7 million voters had cast their ballots, and said in a statement that it was “massive turnout” without counting more votes.

Initial turnout is higher than the 2017 total, said Kelvin Agirre, Chairman of the Board. But nearly 8 of the 5,755 polling stations had transmission problems with polling authorities presenting their vote counts, which was expected to delay results.

Strong participation has risen expectations of change A dozen years after the rule of the National Party.

The left-wing Castro has sought to unite opposition to incumbent President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who has denied allegations of having ties to powerful groups, despite an open investigation in the United States. alleged drug trafficking.

With the 2017 runner-up, who is a well-known TV host, most polls have bolstered his first place.

“We can’t stay home. This is our moment. This is the time to overthrow the dictatorship, ”Castro said, voting in the town of Catacamas and immediately slowed down by reporters.

Long queues can be seen at many polling stations across the country, where about 5.2 million Hondurans have the right to vote.

Elections are the latest political point in Central America, a major source of migrants and refugees fleeing chronic unemployment and group violence to the U.S. Honduras is among the most violent countries in the world, although the homicide rate has dropped recently.

Central America is also a key point for drug trafficking, and where concerns about growing authoritarian governments have grown.

It has also encouraged voting diplomatic struggle Between Beijing and Washington, Castro said he would open diplomatic relations with China, with Taiwan stripped of ties with China, an autonomous island claimed by China.

“This is Honduras”

Castro’s main opponent among the 13 presidential candidates in the election is Asfura of the National Party, a wealthy businessman from the capital Tegucigalpa and a two-term mayor who has tried to distance himself from the unpopular incumbent. He wanted to represent the rival as a radical.

After the vote, a measured Asfura said he would respect the voters ’verdict.

“What the people of Honduras ultimately want, I will respect that,” he said.

Some voters consulted by the Reuters news agency were disappointed with their chances, but many others had clear favorites.

“I am against all corruption, poverty and drug trafficking,” said Jose Gonzalez, a 27-year-old mechanic who said he would vote for Castro.

Hernandez’s controversial 2017 re-election, and its ugly consequences, are huge. Extensive reports of irregularities sparked protests over the lives of more than two dozen people, but he resisted fraudulent claims and a call for a re-vote.

Alexa Sanchez, a 22-year-old medical student, was on a bench after voting while listening to music on headphones, and said she reluctantly voted for Castro.

“The truth is, there weren’t that many good choices,” he said, and said he was very skeptical that the vote would be clean.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “This is Honduras.”

If opposition candidate Xiomara Castro wins, she will be Honduras ’first female president and since her husband, former president Manuel Zelaya, was ousted in a coup in 2009, the left will return to power for the first time. [Jose Cabezas/Reuters]

Nasry Asfura, a wealthy businessman who is the mayor of the capital, has tried to distance himself from the unknown president Juan Orlando Hernandez. [Fredy Rodriguez/Reuters]

Many national and international election observers followed Sunday’s vote, including a 68-member European Union mission.

Zeljana Zovko, the EU’s chief observer, told reporters around noon that her group had mostly seen a quiet vote with high turnout, even though most of the polling stations they visited were open late.

“The campaign has been very tough,” said sociologist Julieta Castellanos and former dean of the Autonomous University of the National University of Honduras, noting that Castro has “raised high hopes”.

Castellanos said post-election violence was possible if the race was particularly tight, with numerous allegations being filed or if candidates were declared ahead of time.

Along with the presidency, voters are also deciding on the composition of the country’s 128-member Congress, plus about 300 local government officials.

In the Kennedy district of the Tegucigalpa working class, 56-year-old accountant Jose, who refused to give his last name, said he would continue with the ruling party.

“I hope Tito Asfura can change everything,” he said, using the mayor’s nickname.

“Look, corruption is in every government here.”