An audit report delivered by the Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States (OAS / MOE) listing irregularities in Honduras’ voting process has been denounced as “false, baseless and subjective” by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE). Among the irregularities, the observers noted that trucks moving ballots arrived at polling stations “without the accompaniment of custodians,” with “open or incomplete suitcases missing the minutes, the incident sheets and the voting papers,” and incidents of vote-buying. The TSE, however, rejected the concerns in a statement Friday, insisting that all electoral material was protected by military personnel and handled accordingly. The ballots may have arrived in a disorganized condition, it said, but they arrived safely and in their entirety.
Despite the irregularities detected during the elections, both the TSE and the OAS declared incumbent President Juan Orlando Hernandez the winner of the disputed November elections, with 42.95% of the votes.
On Friday, former opposition candidate and sports broadcaster Salvador Nasralla finally conceded defeat, saying that if the United States failed to recognize the need for a reelection, then he was “out of the picture.”
Full Article: Honduran Electoral Body Rejects Alleged Vote Irregularities | News | teleSUR English.
