海角大神

Honduras elects first female president as rival concedes

After the ruling party in Honduras conceded defeat following contentious presidential elections, Xiomara Castro is set to become the country鈥檚 first female president. Hondurans and the international community alike welcomed a peaceful democratic transition. 

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Honduras鈥� ruling party conceded defeat Tuesday in presidential elections held two days earlier, giving victory to leftist opposition candidate Xiomara Castro and easing fears of another contested vote and violent protests.

Tegucigalpa Mayor Nasry Asfura, presidential candidate of the National Party, said in a statement that he had personally congratulated Ms. Castro, despite only about half the voting tallies being counted from Sunday鈥檚 election.

The former first lady had 53% of the votes and Mr. Asfura 34%, with 52% of the tallies counted, according to the National Electoral Council. It has 30 days from the election to declare a winner.

Mr. Asfura said he had met with Ms. Castro and her family.

鈥淣ow I want to say it publicly,鈥� the conservative candidate said. 鈥淭hat I congratulate her for her victory and as president elect, I hope that God illuminates and guides her so that her administration does the best for the benefit of all of us Hondurans, to achieve development and the desire for democracy.鈥�

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken congratulated Ms. Castro minutes later.

鈥淭he United States congratulates the people of Honduras on their election and Xiomara Castro on her historic victory as Honduras鈥� first female president,鈥� Mr. Blinken said in a statement. 鈥淲e look forward to working with the next government of Honduras.鈥�

Ms. Castro said via Twitter that Mr. Asfura had recognized her triumph. 鈥淧eople, I am not going to fail you!鈥�

Mr. Asfura鈥檚 recognition of the outcome was a relief to many Hondurans who had feared a contested election after a debacle in 2017 led to street protests that left 23 people dead. Following that vote, the government imposed a curfew and only three weeks later declared now-outgoing President Juan Orlando Hern谩ndez the winner despite the Organization of American States observation mission calling for an election re-do.

Fearing a similar prolonged vote standoff and social unrest, many businesses in Honduras鈥� capital had boarded up their windows for this election.

Mabel Plata, a nursing student, said she appreciated Mr. Asfura鈥檚 recognition of the outcome. 鈥淚t is a sign that he is a professional and polite person and went to see Xiomara for the good of the country.鈥�

Ms. Plata couldn鈥檛 remember another who did the same. 鈥淢ost always claim to be winners and it鈥檚 hard for them to accept defeat.鈥�

Luis Guillermo Sol铆s, former president of Costa Rica and head of the Organization of American States observation mission, said Tuesday in presenting the regional body鈥檚 preliminary report that Hondurans had overcome some technical difficulties to vote in great numbers.

鈥淗onduran society voted with conviction, happiness and responsibility in a context marked by the pandemic and violence, which was denounced opportunely by the mission,鈥� Mr. Sol铆s said. He said the mission had not received reports of other irregularities or fraud.

Ms. Castro rode a wave of popular discontent with 12 years of National Party governance, which peaked in Mr. Hern谩ndez鈥檚 second term.

She will face major challenges as the Central American country鈥檚 president. Unemployment is above 10%, northern Honduras was devastated by two major hurricanes last year, and street gangs drag down the economy with their extortion rackets and violence, driving migration to the U.S.

On Tuesday, Vielka Yossira L贸pez folded jeans at a stand in the sprawling Comayaguela street market.

The single mother of two said she didn鈥檛 vote, but hoped for change.

鈥淗ow am I going to lose a day of work to go vote,鈥� Ms. L贸pez said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 work, I don鈥檛 eat.鈥�

When Ms. L贸pez contracted COVID-19, she wasn鈥檛 able to work for two months. In that time she sold her bed, her refrigerator, television, and cellphone so she could buy food and diapers for her children, ages 3 and 6.

Ms. L贸pez makes 200 lempiras, about $8.25 per day. She pays $1.60 of that just for transportation to and from work each day. Her 6-year-old has been out of school for more than a year.

Ms. L贸pez is hopeful that when Ms. Castro becomes president she will bring with her a better understanding of what it takes to raise a family.

鈥淗opefully there will be a change by having a woman,鈥� Ms. L贸pez said. 鈥淪he has children and everything.鈥�

Ms. Castro鈥檚 government could present challenges, but also opportunities for the Biden administration, which has sought to keep Mr. Hern谩ndez at arm鈥檚 length.

Many Castro supporters remember the U.S. government鈥檚 initial sluggishness in calling the ouster of Ms. Castro鈥檚 husband Manuel Zelaya from the presidency in 2009 a coup, and then proceeding to work closely with the National Party presidents who followed. And from the U.S. perspective, Washington remembers how Ms. Castro and Mr. Zelaya cozied up to then-Venezuela President Hugo Ch谩vez.

Analysts say common ground between Ms. Castro and the U.S. government exists in at least three areas: immigration, drug trafficking, and corruption. And with tense relations prevailing between Washington and the leaders of El Salvador and Guatemala, the U.S. government could use a productive relationship with Honduras.

Despite opponents鈥� efforts to paint Ms. Castro as a communist, experts expect her to govern as a centrist with a desire to lift up Honduras鈥� poor while attracting foreign investment.

A speech Ms. Castro made to her Liberty and Re-foundation party in June remains one her clearest expressions of how she will navigate the U.S. relationship.

鈥淚n the first 100 days, we will execute and propose to the administration of President Joe Biden and Kamala Harris a plan to combat and address the true causes of migration,鈥� Ms. Castro said.

Ms. Castro describes Hondurans鈥� emigration in terms of flight to escape inequality, corruption, poverty, and violence. That sounds a lot like Ms. Harris鈥� assessment of the root causes the Biden administration wants to focus U.S. aid on.

But Ms. Castro also puts some of the blame on the U.S. government.

鈥淚 believe the Biden administration has an enormous opportunity to address the issue of migration,鈥� Ms. Castro said in the June speech. 鈥淔irst, recognizing that they have part of the responsibility for what happens in our country,鈥� she added, noting the 2009 coup.

Ms. Castro has hammered the outgoing Hern谩ndez administration for corruption. It was Mr. Hern谩ndez鈥檚 administration that let the Organization of American States鈥� anti-corruption mission in Honduras expire in 2020 after its work had touched some of the National Party鈥檚 lawmakers for alleged misuse of public funds.

She has said she鈥檚 interested in having an international anti-corruption mission return to Honduras. That combined with a strong, independent attorney general, could begin to tackle one of the country鈥檚 most profound problems.

U.S. federal prosecutors have put corruption under the microscope in drug trafficking cases that have reached up to high-ranking Honduran politicians. The most notable was the conviction of Mr. Hern谩ndez鈥檚 brother, a former federal lawmaker, on drug trafficking charges that earned him a life sentence in the U.S.

In a speech late Sunday night, Ms. Castro told supporters: 鈥淕et out war! Get out hate! Get out death squads! Get out corruption! Get out drug trafficking and organized crime!鈥�

This story was reported by The Associated Press.