The Organization of American States has called for fresh elections in Honduras, hours after President Juan Orlando Hernández was declared the winner. Luis Almagro – the secretary general of the OAS, a regional forum which sent an election observer mission to monitor the Honduran poll – said the process was plagued by irregularities, had “very low technical quality” and lacked integrity. The statement came after the electoral court president, David Matamoros, revealed the winner on Sunday, saying: “We have fulfilled our obligation [and] we wish for there to be peace in our country.” It follows three weeks of uncertainty and unrest following the 26 November poll. At least 17 people have died in protests amid opposition allegations of election fraud.
Opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla is in Washington DC and is meeting the US State Department, the OAS and non-governmental organisations to present what he called “numerous” pieces of evidence of alleged fraud.
According to the court’s official count, Hernández won with 42.95% to 41.42% for runner-up Nasralla who had challenged the result well before the announcement and said he would not recognise it.
Full Article: Call for fresh Honduras election after president Juan Orlando Hernández wins | World news | The Guardian.