2013 Honduran general election

Background

This is the first election to be contested by the opposition since the controversial and polarising 2009 Honduran coup d'état. The social mobilization since then led to the founding of the main opposition party, Libre.

Two-party system

Honduras has historically been dominated by a two-party system – the National Party and the Liberal Party. This election represents the first time in Honduran history in which other parties had a chance at winning the presidency or at least gaining a significant representation in the Congress, four of which find their genesis post-coup.

Human rights concerns

The elections took place amidst a deteriorating human rights situations. Amnesty International called attention to the killings of human rights defenders in the lead-up to the election, noting that Honduras had the highest homicide rate in the world yet only twenty percent of homicides were investigated. pointing to the level of political violence in the country: human rights group Rights Action examined the period between May 2012 and October 2013 and documented 36 killings and 24 armed attacks against pre-candidates, candidates, their families and campaign leaders across all parties, with Libre experiencing the majority of both armed attacks and killings. In light of this situation, 24 U.S. Senators signed a letter to the U.S. State Department expressing their concerns about the upcoming elections.

Campaign

Key electoral issues have been citizen security, organized crime, unemployment, and corruption. One of the main components of Hernández's campaign is his promise to put "a soldier on every corner."

Presidential candidates

Primaries

Primaries were held for the National Party, Liberal Party and Libre.

National

Juan Orlando Hernández, president of the National Congress of Honduras, won the presidential nomination of the National Party. The other candidates were Ricardo Álvarez (the Mayor of Tegucigalpa), Fernando Anduray (National Congress deputy), Victor Hugo Barnica (Third Vice President of Honduras), Eva Fernandez, Loreley Fernandez, and Miguel Pastor (Secretary of State for Public Works, Transport, and Housing). The Supreme Electoral Tribunal certified Hernández's victory, but Álvarez immediately presented an appeal, accusing Hernández of fraud and asking for a recount. The appeal was rejected by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court, four of whose five members were replaced by Hernández a month earlier in a move widely criticized as an illegal "technical coup". Álvarez and Pastor refused to attend the party convention in protest, claiming that they were being persecuted by their own party.

Liberal

Mauricio Villeda, won the presidential nomination of the Liberal Party. Other candidates in the fray for the presidential nomination were Esteban Handal Perez and Yani Rosenthal (National Congress deputy and former Minister of Presidency).

Libre

Xiomara Castro de Zelaya, former First Lady of Honduras, was the sole presidential candidate in the Libre primaries.

Opinion polls

President

Congress

Conduct

Honduran elections have historically been marred by fraud, and polls leading up to the elections found that 59% of Hondurans believe the elections would be fraudulent. However, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) has stated that these would be the most clean and fair elections in Honduras's history, and both the traditionally dominant parties – the National and Liberal parties – agree. The newly formed Libre Party and Anti-Corruption Party fear that there would be fraud, a position backed by the Carter Center. Nasralla highlighted National Party control of key government institutions like the Public Ministry and the Supreme Court. the latter of which ultimately resulted in Hernández securing his party's nomination for the presidency.

The TSE has stated that over 700 international election observers, representing various governments and organizations, including the United Nations, the Organization of American States, the European Union, and the Carter Center, will be present to monitor the elections. In the days before the election, international observers in the department of Yoro and in the capital Tegucigalpa reported targeted harassment and intimidation on the part of immigration officials and unidentified armed men. The TSE confirmed these reports and ordered the Honduran immigration authorities to stop all of these types of operations concerning election observers.

Results

President

National Congress

Aftermath

Juan Orlando Hernández was announced as the winner in a result the Supreme Electoral Tribunal's head, David Matamoros, called "irreversible", this followed initial claims by both leading candidates of having won. While opposition protests continued, Hernández said the result was "not negotiable with anybody" and named a transition team.

However, Castro and Nasralla disputed the results. Castro called on her supporters to hold a protest on Saturday 30 November.

According to the North American Congress on Latin America, the elections were "fraught with irregularities and violent intimidation, threatening to throw the embattled nation into further political disarray." However, observers from the Organization of American States and the United Nations declared that the elections met international standards and were both free and fair.

References

References

1. Tribunal Supremo Electoral Honduras. (9 April 2013). "Universidades de País Apoyaran al TSE para la Realización de las Elecciones Generales". TSE.
2. Nina Lakhami. (23 November 2013). "The fight to take power in Honduras". [[Al Jazeera English.
3. Carlos Salinas. (8 October 2013). "Honduras rompe cien años de bipartidismo". [[El País]].
4. (5 November 2013). "Honduras: Elections should mark a turning point for human rights". [[Amnesty International]].
5. (31 October 2013). "Humanitarian national emergency". Radio Mundo Real.
6. Karen Spring. (21 October 2013). "Context of the Honduran Electoral Process 2012: Incomplete list of Killings and Armed Attacks Related to Political Campaigning in Honduras".
7. Lauren Carasik. (3 November 2013). "Honduras' political violence threatens to undermine its November elections". [[Al Jazeera America]].
8. Javier Sánchez. (24 May 2013). "Histórico abanico de partidos". [[La Tribuna (Honduras).
9. (4 August 2013). "En Tocoa, Colón: Xiomara ofrece policía comunitaria y enviaría militares a cuidar fronteras". [[El Tiempo (Honduras).
10. (11 December 2012). "Ricardo Álvarez anuncia que presentará recurso". El Heraldo.
11. Annie Bird. (8 January 2013). "December 12, 2012 "Coup" in Honduras: The Constitutional Court Dismissed as Primary Elections are Challenged". Rights Action.
12. (15 August 2013). "Ricardo y Miguel confirman que no irán a Convención nacionalista". La Prensa.
13. (24 September 2013). "Remonta Juan Orlando Hernández en intención de voto presidencial". [[La Prensa (Honduras).
14. (29 September 2013). "Intención de voto para presidente a nivel nacional – Encuestra Septiembre 2013". Paradigma Encuestadora.
15. (24 October 2013). "Honduras: Juan Orlando arriba 5 puntos según CID-Gallup". La Prensa.
16. (21 October 2013). "Intención de voto para presidente a nivel nacional – Encuestra Octubre 2013". Paradigma Encuestadora.
17. (11 October 2013). "Honduras: Xiomara Castro sigue encabezando encuestas". Kaos en la Red.
18. Gina Kawas. (6 November 2013). "El fantasma del fraude electoral en Honduras". Panam Post.
19. Orlin Cruz Martínez. (4 October 2013). "A Propósito de Fraude Electoral". [[El Tiempo (Honduras).
20. Parvez Jabri. (19 October 2013). "US lawmakers warn Kerry of Honduras vote problems". [[Business Recorder]].
21. (27 September 2013). "Survey shows Honduran citizens expect electoral fraud, and are dissatisfied with democracy". Resistencia Honduras.
22. Gustavo Veiga. (4 November 2013). "Honduras irá a las urnas marcada por el golpe". Página 12.
23. (19 August 2013). ""Partido Nacional ya compró credenciales": Nasralla". [[La Prensa (Honduras).
24. Dana Frank. (6 November 2013). "A High-Stakes Election in Honduras". [[The Nation]].
25. (9 November 2013). "Unos 700 observadores internacionales vigilarán las elecciones en Honduras". El Mundo.
26. (23 November 2013). "Honduras: Detienen a Delegación Internacional de Observación de DDHH". Diario Uchile.
27. (23 November 2013). "Ordenan a Migración detener operativo". El Heraldo.
28. (26 November 2013). "Hernandez lead 'irreversible' in Honduras". [[Al Jazeera English.
29. (25 November 2013). "Tension increases in Honduras, as election sparks competing claims of victory, fraud". [[The Washington Post]].
30. (27 November 2013). "Winner named in Honduras presidential vote; opposition vows protests". [[CNN]].
31. (28 November 2013). "Honduran Election Results Contested by International Observers". [[North American Congress on Latin America]].
32. (28 November 2013). "Honduras election: Hernandez declared winner". BBC.