By Zoila Palma: Human Rights Watch says mounting political pressure and institutional conflict are jeopardizing the credibility of Honduras’ upcoming general elections, scheduled for November 30, 2025.
The organization warns that escalating investigations targeting top electoral officials, combined with internal deadlock within the National Electoral Council (CNE), threaten Hondurans’ fundamental right to participate in a free and fair vote.
Allegations of fraud from both President Xiomara Castro and opposition parties have further fueled uncertainty around the electoral process.
The country’s electoral authority has been divided since 2019 between the Electoral Justice Tribunal (TJE), responsible for electoral justice, and the CNE, which oversees the election process. Both bodies are composed of three members representing the National, Liberal, and Libre parties, but tension among council members has recently paralyzed decision-making.
The deadlock has repeatedly delayed the awarding of key contracts needed to organize the elections. “Allegations of possible fraud, aggressive moves by both prosecutors and the army, and political deadlock in the electoral authority are threatening Hondurans’ right to participate in free and fair elections,” said Juanita Goebertus, Americas director at Human Rights Watch.
In late October, Attorney General Johel Zelaya launched an investigation into Cossette López, the CNE member representing the National Party, accusing her—based on a disputed audio recording—of planning to manipulate election results.
President Castro has described the recording as part of a “criminal conspiracy” intended to trigger an electoral coup. Prosecutors have since opened a separate case against two judges of the TJE for allegedly approving a resolution without the full panel present.
Meanwhile, concerns heightened when a nationwide test of the preliminary results transmission system reportedly failed, with CNE councilor Marlon Ochoa claiming there was a conspiracy “from within the electoral body itself.”
Tensions expanded to include the military after the armed forces requested copies of presidential vote tally sheets—an overreach rejected by CNE president Ana Paola Hall, who noted that the army is responsible only for transporting materials, not accessing results. Shortly after, the armed forces filed a criminal defamation complaint against López.
With distrust rising on all sides, Human Rights Watch emphasized the importance of independent observers.
Both the Organization of American States and the European Union have deployed missions and expressed deep concern over the “daily” developments destabilizing the electoral process, urging Honduran authorities to ensure that electoral institutions operate transparently and free from political interference.
The post International News: Human Rights Watch warns of growing threats to Free and Fair elections in Honduras appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Zoila Palma: Human Rights Watch says mounting political pressure and institutional conflict are jeopardizing the credibility of Honduras’ upcoming general elections, scheduled for November 30, 2025. The organization warns that escalating investigations targeting top electoral officials, combined with internal deadlock within the National Electoral Council (CNE), threaten Hondurans’ fundamental right to participate in a free
The post International News: Human Rights Watch warns of growing threats to Free and Fair elections in Honduras appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.