WASHINGTON – The US State Department denied a visa to Honduran National Electoral Council member Marlon Ochoa and revoked that of electoral court head Mario Morazan for undermining democracy amid the country’s disputed presidential vote. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the measures Friday: “The Department has refused the visa application of Marlon Ochoa and taken steps to impose visa restrictions on another individual… We will consider all appropriate measures to deter those impeding the vote count.” Neither official responded to comment requests.
Honduras’ November 30 election remains unresolved three weeks later, plagued by botched tallying, fraud claims, and US pressure. Following a State Department demand, the council launched a manual recount Thursday of 15% of ballots, flagged for inconsistencies and excluded earlier due to protests. Pre-election tests revealed flaws, with only 36% of practice ballots processed.
The recount could flip preliminary results showing National Party’s Nasry Asfura leading Liberal Party’s Salvador Nasralla by a slim 43,000 votes out of over 3 million. President Donald Trump endorsed Asfura, hinting US aid hinges on his victory. The council must declare a winner by December 30 for a January inauguration.