The conservative candidate of the ruling Honduran party admitted defeat in the presidential election on Tuesday night (30), paving the way for his leftist rival Xiomara Castro to become the first woman to lead the country.
Calling Castro “president-elect”, National Party candidate Nasry Asfura said he visited his rival to congratulate him on winning last Sunday’s vote (28), in a move that will end his 12-year term. group.
“I want to say publicly that I congratulate you on your victory,” Asfura said in a video broadcast on local television.
Castro amassed a preliminary lead of nearly 20 percentage points over Asfura, but the outcome decision faced delays due to a slow vote count in the electoral council.
With more than 52% of the votes counted by Tuesday night, Castro has 53.4% support, against 31% for Asfura.
Minutes after Asfura’s concession, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also congratulated Castro and said Washington is looking forward to working with her.
“We congratulate Hondurans on the high voter turnout, peaceful participation and active engagement of civil society that marked this election, signaling an enduring commitment to the democratic process,” said Blinken.
Although the electoral council has not published preliminary vote totals for the parliamentary disputes, early results point to a possible majority for the left-wing Libre party and its main allies.
The head of the National Party, David Chávez, said earlier that his party would assume the role of “constructive opposition” and was ready to work with the next government.
The defeat ends a turbulent period for the National Party, which was marred by scandals and accusations of corruption, especially during the two terms of former president Juan Orlando Hernandez.
Hernandez is deeply unpopular and has been cited in a drug trafficking case in US federal court. He denies any wrongdoing but could face a charge when he leaves office.
Castro’s victory will see the left return to power after a 12-year hiatus that followed the ousting of her husband, former president Manuel Zelaya, in a coup in 2009.
The candidate faces major challenges in Honduras, where unemployment, crime, corruption and the threat of gangs have helped spur record-breaking migration to the United States.
The smooth transmission of the results of the early elections helped transparency and confidence, said the European Union observer mission.
Reference: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
