Tegucigalpa [Honduras], December 1 : The polling in Honduras has started in a neck-and-neck contest between National Party candidate Nasry Asfura, Liberty and Refoundation (LIBRE) candidate Rixi Moncada, and Liberal Party candidate Salvador Nasralla, who has previously served as the Vice President.
Nearly 6.5 million Hondurans will elect their new president amid concerns over voter fraud and threats of "aid cut" by US president Donald Trump if his preferred candidate (Asfura) loses.
Al Jazeera reported that the polls opened on Sunday morning (local time) for 10 hours of voting, with the first results expected late Sunday night.
Moncada belongs to the ruling Left-wing LIBRE party and has served as Honduras's Defence Minister, while Trump's favourite, Asfura, is from the Right-wing National Party and has previously served as Tegucigalpa's Mayor. Nasralla, a television host, belongs to the centrist Liberal Party.
Al Jazeera reported that the Honduran elections are taking place in a highly "polarised climate" with accusations of fraud. Moncada suggested that she will not recognise the official results. Hondurans will elect 128 members of Congress, hundreds of mayors, and thousands of other public officials in this election, Al Jazeera reported.
Incumbent President Xiomara Castro of the LIBRE party is limited by law to one term in office.
Honduras's Attorney General's Office, aligned with the ruling party, has accused the opposition parties of planning to commit voter fraud, a claim they deny, Al Jazeera reported.
The authorities have initiated a probe into audio recordings that purportedly show a politician from the National Party discussing plans to influence the election with an unidentified military officer. Al Jazeera reported that the alleged recordings have been central to Moncada's campaign.
The rise in political tensions, with the top three candidates accusing each other of plotting fraud, has resulted in public distrust of election authorities in Honduras, Al Jazeera reported.
"We are hoping that there will be no fraud and that the elections will be peaceful," said Jennifer Lopez, Al Jazeera quoted a 22-year-old law student in Tegucigalpa as saying. "This would be a huge step forward for democracy in our country."
Earlier, Trump backed "Tito" Asfura, saying the US would be "very supportive" if he were elected. However, he said, the US will "not be throwing good money after bad" if Asfura doesn't secure victory since "a wrong Leader can only bring catastrophic results to a country, no matter which country it is."
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