TEGUCIGALPA, Nov 29 — The top presidential candidates in yesterday's Honduran general election appealed for peace in a tight and tense vote to see who will replace Juan Orlando Hernandez, a controversial figure accused of drug trafficking in the United States.

Reports of intimidation and violence in the buildup led to fears the election could spark the same unrest that broke out four years ago after Hernandez won an unconstitutional second successive term amid accusations of fraud.

More than 30 people died as authorities cracked down on a month-long protest.

“We want this to be a civic festival, in peace and tranquility (so) we can head out en masse to exercise suffrage,” said leftist Xiomara Castro, the frontrunner in last month’s opinion polls who would be her country’s first female president.

“Peace and tranquility are priceless, and listen to me well: not one drop of blood is worth it,” added Nasry Asfura, the mayor of Tegucigalpa and candidate for the ruling right-wing National Party (PN).

More than five million people are registered to vote.

People were queueing up even before polls opened at 7.30am (1330 GMT).

The opposition has expressed fears that the vote may be rigged to keep the PN in power, which would almost inevitably prompt street protests.

“If the PN wins the election, even legitimately, there will be a worrying level of violence,” political analyst Raul Pineda, a lawyer and former PN lawmaker, told AFP.

“It’s worrying,” Luis Gomez, 26, told AFP from the gang-ridden Tegucigalpa neighbourhood of La Sosa. “I live day to day (and) it would hurt us if there were disturbances.”

‘Preparing for war’

The country has been hit hard by gang violence, drug trafficking and hurricanes, with 59 per cent of the 10 million people living in poverty.

“A kind of paranoia has developed, people are preparing for war” by stocking up on food and water, said Pineda.

But he said pressure from Washington — which wants to reduce triggers for Central American mass migration to the US — along with the presence of international observers should ensure a transparent vote.

The crucial moment will come three hours after polls close at 5.00pm, when the National Electoral Council (CNE) is due to announce early results, Gustavo Irias, executive director of the Centre for Democracy Studies, told AFP.

Some 18,000 police and as many soldiers are on duty nationwide.

Early voting, at least, transpired calmly in the capital.

“We’ve tried this government for 12 years and things have gone from bad to worse,” said Gomez. “We hope for something new.”

The PN has portrayed Castro, of the LIBRE party, as an authoritarian communist.

“We don’t want the Venezuelan dictatorship here in Honduras,” said Rosa Diaz, 31, a homemaker in a middle-class neighbourhood who is supporting the PN.

‘No narco-states, only narco-governments’

The PN has been in power since Manuel Zelaya — Castro’s husband — was ousted in a 2009 coup supported by the military, business elites and the political right.

Corruption and drug-trafficking scandals have engulfed Hernandez and many in his inner circle, including Asfura.

Hernandez’s brother Tony is serving a life sentence in a US prison for drug trafficking.

Drug barons who the president helped extradite to the US have accused him of involvement in the illicit trade.

Asfura was accused in 2020 of embezzling US$700,000 of public money, and the so-called Pandora Papers linked him to influence-peddling in Costa Rica.

The third major candidate of 13 in the presidential race, the Liberal Party’s Yani Rosenthal, spent three years in a US jail for money-laundering.

“Honduras is internationally known as a narco-state. But there are no narco-states, only narco-governments,” said analyst Pineda.

“People won’t vote for Xiomara (Castro), they will vote against Juan Orlando Hernandez and what he represents.”

Jump in unemployment

For many voters, the main issue is jobs.

Unemployment jumped from 5.7 per cent in 2019 to 10.9 per cent in 2020, largely because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a study by the Autonomous University.

The country was also ravaged by two hurricanes in 2020.

“I want prosperity for us, employment, education,” said Elizabeth Romero, 75, a domestic worker from La Sosa.

Elvin Aguilar, 32, who was begging for money at a traffic light with his infant daughter in his arms, said he hoped the new government would provide “work and everything else.”

Hondurans will also elect the 128 members of the National Congress and 20 representatives of the Central American parliament. — AFP