Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez was declared on Sunday the winner of a heavily disputed presidential election held three weeks ago, despite mounting protests and opposition claims of fraud.
Electoral authorities made the announcement the day that Hernandez’s leftist opponent, Salvador Nasralla, departed for the United States to highlight what he said was ballot tampering in the November 26 poll.
The declaration could deepen a spiral of violence that has occurred since the election, as anti-Hernandez protesters and police have squared off repeatedly.
Police have counted three deaths in the unrest. But the opposition says 20 people have died, and Amnesty International registered 14 fatalities.
Hernandez, 49, stood for re-election against Nasralla, a 64-year-old former TV presenter, despite a constitutional ban on presidents having more than one term.
His conservative National Party said that rule was scrapped by a 2015 Supreme Court ruling.
But the opposition insists ballots were tampered with after the election, and says unusual breaks in the count that dragged out the tally over more than a week were suspicious. (Reuters)
