Honduras election council member accuses colleague of intimidation'

"But even before the first ballots were cast in Sunday's election, controversies had gripped the council, resulting in accusations of malpractice from all three leading parties. The CNE is led by a three-person panel. Each CNE councillor is selected by Honduras's legislature to represent the three main political parties: the Liberal Party, the National Party and LIBRE, the party of outgoing President Xiomara Castro. Lopez-Osorio represents the National Party."

"The accusations escalate the already heated atmosphere surrounding Sunday's race. Currently, two candidates are in a dead heat as votes continue to be counted: Salvador Nasralla of the centre-right Liberal Party and Nasry Tito Asfura of the right-wing National Party. As of Tuesday afternoon, Nasralla had inched ahead with more than 39.93 percent of the vote, with Asfura close behind at 39.86 percent."

Cossette Lopez-Osorio, a National Party representative on the National Electoral Council (CNE), accused fellow councillor Marlon Ochoa of seeking to delay a news conference through intimidation. She said a press conference to resume releasing results was disrupted when Ochoa opposed restarting the process and sent LIBRE party members and staff to storm the Hotel Plaza Juan Carlos to prevent a public appearance. The presidential race is extremely close, with Salvador Nasralla at about 39.93 percent and Nasry Tito Asfura at about 39.86 percent, and roughly 20 percent of votes still uncounted. The three-person CNE panel draws councillors from the main parties.

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