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The United States congratulated on Tuesday the Honduran socialist candidate, Xiomara Castro, for her victory as the first female President of Honduras, said U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in a statement, after the ruling party’s Nasry Asfura conceded victory in the general elections.
Blinken said the U.S. will continue to support Honduras in strengthening its democratic institutions, promoting economic growth and fighting corruption and transnational crime.
Castro, leader of the Libertad y Refundación Party (Libre, left), leads the election results with 986,902 votes (53.29%), against 632,709 (34.17%) of Nasry Asfura, of the ruling National Party, corresponding to 53.12% of the votes received, according to the National Electoral Council (CNE).
The electoral body had processed, up to 23:00 local time (05:00 GMT), since Sunday night, 1.9 million votes among the 5.1 million eligible voters for the elections, which have had 68.27% of participation at the polls.
In this sense, Blinken congratulated Hondurans for the high and peaceful voter turnout, which, according to him, demonstrates a “lasting” commitment to the democratic process.
Castro, of the Libertad y Refundación (Libre) party, is thus emerging as the winner in Sunday’s elections, although the scrutiny is still ongoing.
If made official, Castro, wife of former President Manuel Zelaya, known for his ties to Venezuelan Chavismo, would become the first female president of Honduras.
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