Honduran President Declared Winner, but O.A.S. Calls for New Election<br />17, 2017<br />MEXICO CITY — The Honduran electoral commission on Sunday declared President Juan Orlando Hernández the victor in a bitterly contested race, but the Organization of American States called for a new election, arguing<br />that the vote was so riddled with irregularities that it was impossible to be sure of a winner.<br />In a video posted on his Facebook page from the airport in Miami, Mr. Nasralla said, "The fight continues and will continue." He said the result announced by the commission "has no validity simply because the Organization of American States, of which Honduras is a member, does not endorse the results." In a sign<br />that Mr. Hernández was prepared to challenge the O.A.S.<br />Election observers from the European Union also said Sunday<br />that the opposition had failed to show a significant difference between their parties’ copies of the tally sheets and those that were counted by the electoral tribunal.<br />election observer team had just presented a report<br />that concluded the election process was of "poor quality." The electoral commission’s declaration came as Mr. Nasralla was on his way to Washington to meet with Mr. Almagro and the State Department.<br />said on Dec. 6 that the "irregularities, mistakes and systemic problems plaguing this election make it difficult" to be "certain about the outcome." The organization backed a call for a partial recount,<br />and the electoral commission went ahead with the tally.<br />David Matamoros, the electoral commission president<br />and a member of the Honduran president’s National Party, declared a winner despite an earlier call from Mr. Almagro to hold back.
