Hondurans vote in an election Trump is trying to influence

Michael McDonald, Bloomberg News on Nov 30, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Hondurans are voting for president under pressure from Donald Trump, in an election in which the two front-runners pledge to end diplomatic ties with Beijing.

Former vice president and sportscaster Salvador Nasralla, who Trump attacked as a “borderline communist,” led polls heading in to Sunday’s vote.

Nasry Asfura, a conservative former mayor of the capital Tegucigalpa, was polling second. He won the U.S. leader’s endorsement last week as “the man who is standing up for Democracy.” Both Nasralla and Asfura have pledged to cut ties with China and Venezuela, and revive diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Rixi Moncada of the ruling Libre party, which has backed Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and pledged to maintain relations with Beijing, was polling third ahead of the vote. She has hinted that she won’t recognize the results if she loses, saying that preliminary election results scheduled to be released Sunday night are “a trap.” She said Libre will conduct its own polling showing their victory by noon while voting is still ongoing.

Trump said in a social media post that he would be unable to work with Moncada, while Nasralla is “not a reliable partner for freedom.”

Just two days before the vote, Trump said he plans to pardon Juan Orlando Hernández, a former president of Honduras sentenced to 45 years in prison after being convicted of cocaine trafficking and weapons offenses. It’s unclear whether this decision will influence voters. Hernández belonged to Asfura’s National Party of Honduras.

The head of the armed forces, General Roosevelt Hernández, told local media that the armed forces would only recognize the full, official count, and not the quick count whose results are expected on Sunday evening.

The vote is the latest test of whether the region is aligning itself with President Trump as he pressures trade partners to distance themselves from Beijing. Last week, Chileans sent conservative José Antonio Kast to a presidential runoff while, last month, pro-business senator Rodrigo Paz won Bolivia’s presidential runoff.

Voting centers are open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time with initial results expected after 8 p.m, according to the National Board of Elections. Under the nation’s electoral system, the president is elected in a single round of voting.

_____