The day before Honduras elects a new president, the main topics of conversation shifted from domestic matters to US President Donald Trump and the former Honduran president he said he will pardon.
Trump cannonballed into the deep end of Honduran politics this week, first endorsing presidential candidate Nasry “Tito” Asfura from the conservative National Party and then announcing the pardon of ex-President Juan Orlando Hernandez – of the same party – sentenced to 45 years in a US prison for helping move tons of cocaine.
Until the US president’s splashy entrance, the main concern around the election was that the three main candidates were all undermining the process’ credibility, warning of manipulation and saying they wouldn’t recognise a preliminary result that did not go their way.
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On Saturday, Hondurans were trying to sort out who would benefit from Trump’s actions and what exactly he was trying to do.
The endorsement of Asfura seemed straightforward enough: one conservative backing another. But throwing in Hernández, someone whose lengthy US federal trial in a New York City courtroom was covered daily in the Honduran media, was a wild card.
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It could hurt Asfura by reminding voters of the depths of the corruption of his party. Or it could help him by firing up the National Party’s base.