Who Is Nasry Asfura? Honduras’s President, His Turn to Washington and What Comes Next
PROFILE · HONDURAS
Key Facts
- —Who he is A construction businessman and two-term mayor of Tegucigalpa from the conservative National Party.
- —The country Honduras has about 11 million people, uses the lempira and lives heavily on money sent home by migrants.
- —His mandate He won the November 2025 election with 40.3 percent, about 26,000 votes ahead of Salvador Nasralla.
- —His standing A CB Global Data poll in September 2026 found 43.2 percent approval and 54.2 percent disapproval.
- —What to watch Taiwan ties, the gang crackdown, the IMF programme ending in December 2026 and the 2029 election.
Nasry Asfura took office in January 2026 after a disputed count and an open endorsement from Donald Trump. He has since moved Honduras closer to Washington, courted investors and launched a hard line against gangs.
Asfura is a builder by trade who made his name with public works as mayor of the capital. In his first year he has courted Washington and investors, while polls show Hondurans split over his record.
A Builder From Tegucigalpa
Nasry Juan Asfura Zablah was born on 8 June 1958 in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital. Both of his parents were of Palestinian origin, the Spanish news agency EFE reported.
He finished school at the Instituto San Francisco and began civil engineering at the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH). He soon left his studies for the construction business.
Construction remained his main business for most of his working life. He has been married for more than 40 years to Lissette del Cid, and they have three daughters.
Into politics through city hall
Asfura entered public service in the 1990s as a municipal aide and sat on Tegucigalpa’s city council from 2006 to 2010. In 2010 he took a seat in the National Congress for Francisco Morazán, the department around the capital.
President Porfirio Lobo soon named him to run the Honduran Social Investment Fund (FHIS), a state agency that pays for local infrastructure. In 2025 he campaigned on fiscal stability, jobs and infrastructure, promising projects with an immediate economic effect.
The Mayor Who Became a Candidate
Asfura was mayor of Tegucigalpa from 2014 to 2022, winning two terms. He became known for infrastructure projects and for the nickname “Papi a la orden”, roughly “Daddy at your service”.
EFE reported that he uses the phrase to greet party supporters. It first slipped out during an internal National Party campaign in 2005.
In 2021 he ran for president for the National Party and lost to Xiomara Castro of the left-wing Libre party. EFE noted that the party’s three terms in power, from 2010 to 2022, were marked by corruption and drug-trafficking allegations.
The best-known case involved Juan Orlando Hernández, who governed Honduras for the National Party from 2014 to 2022. A New York court sentenced him to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking in 2024.
A Razor-Thin, Disputed Victory
Asfura tried again in the election of 30 November 2025. Days before the vote, President Donald Trump called him the “only true friend of freedom in Honduras”, EFE reported.
Trump also tied future US support to Asfura’s victory and announced a pardon for Hernández, which he granted on 1 December 2025. Criterio, a left-leaning news site, later called Asfura “the one anointed by Donald Trump”.
The count took 24 days and was marred by technical failures and a special review of disputed tally sheets. On 24 December the National Electoral Council (CNE) declared Asfura the winner with 40.3 percent.
Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party took about 39.5 percent, roughly 26,000 votes behind, Reuters reported. Libre’s Rixi Moncada came third with about 19 percent, and her party called the result an “electoral coup”.
Observers from the Organization of American States (OAS) said they found no evidence that would cast doubt on the results. Asfura was sworn in on 27 January 2026, aged 67, for a four-year term.
“We have to get to work,” Asfura said at his swearing-in, promising humility and total commitment, Reuters reported. Two days later he announced that he would also run the health ministry himself.
Power in Congress and the Courts
The National Party holds 49 of the 128 seats in Congress, short of a majority on its own. It governs in alliance with the Liberals, who hold 41, while Libre has 35.
That alliance moved fast against the institutions it inherited. In March 2026 Congress removed Attorney General Johel Zelaya by 93 votes, as the Rio Times reported.
Zelaya had reopened a criminal case against Asfura and sought Hernández’s arrest after the US pardon. Within hours the Supreme Court’s chief justice, Rebeca Ráquel, resigned before Congress could open impeachment proceedings against her.
Congress accused Zelaya of using his office as a political weapon during the 2025 campaign. His defenders called it retaliation, and critics noted the process took less than 48 hours.
Hernández comes home
Hernández returned to Honduras on 26 July 2026, after local authorities lifted an arrest warrant linked to separate corruption cases. On 1 September a Honduran court dismissed the fraud and money-laundering case against him, known as Pandora II.
Criterio, a left-leaning outlet, listed the ruling among high-profile corruption cases that ended without convictions. The court’s spokesman said the judge found no traceable link between the money and campaign financing.
Asfura’s own case
In October 2024 anti-corruption prosecutors accused Asfura of diverting more than 28 million lempiras (about US$1.0 million) as mayor. An appeals court annulled the proceedings in December 2024 and sent the case to the Supreme Court on jurisdiction grounds.
His lawyer, Dagoberto Aspra, disputed the evidence and now heads the PGR, the state’s legal office. As of March 2026 the case still awaited a first hearing at the Supreme Court, and no court has convicted Asfura.
A Hard Line on Gangs
Security policy has hardened sharply under Asfura. In May 2026 he signed a penal code reform that made gangs, known as maras and pandillas, terrorist associations.
In September the National Defence and Security Council declared three groups terrorist: MS-13, Pandilla 18 and the Cártel del Diablo. El Heraldo reported that the council approved the measure at the presidential palace on 18 September.
Congress then unanimously passed a law sending suspected members to maximum-security cells before trial. It also removed alternatives to pre-trial detention and limited family visits to contact through glass.
The national university’s violence observatory put the 2025 homicide rate at 26.2 per 100,000, far below the peaks of 2011 and 2012. Police figures counted 216 killings in the first 27 days of September 2026, against 188 a year earlier, we reported.
The UN human rights office in Honduras warned that very broad definitions of terrorism can lead to further rights violations. The government argues that criminal groups are forcing families from their homes.
Turning Back Toward Washington
Asfura has made the United States the centre of his foreign policy. Trump received him at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on 7 February 2026, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met him a month later.
In March, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited him in Tegucigalpa. Washington has nonetheless ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a US work permit held by many Hondurans.
Honduran goods also face a 10 percent US tariff, and Honduras is seeking a trade deal like those signed by its neighbours. Before taking office, Asfura visited Israel and met President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
That trip drew protests from Palestinian diaspora groups, including relatives of Asfura in Chile, Criterio reported. The Palestinian Union of Latin America called the visit political alignment, not a gesture of peace.
Taiwan, ICSID and a busy travel schedule
During the campaign Asfura promised to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan, which Castro broke in March 2023 to recognise Beijing. In June 2026, however, the foreign ministry said it held no official talks with Taipei, EFE reported.
He did reverse another Castro decision quickly, re-signing the convention of the World Bank’s investment arbitration court, ICSID, on 6 March. World Bank president Ajay Banga called the return a clear signal that Honduras is open for business.
More than 50 civil-society groups called it a “signal of submission” to foreign capital, as the Rio Times reported. The investors behind Próspera, a private city on Roatán island, still pursue Honduras at that court.
By late July Asfura had made seven trips abroad in six months, including Germany, Ukraine and Chile, the outlet Confidencial HN counted. Critics said he should focus on insecurity, prices and health, while the government said the trips attract investment.
The Economy, Power Bills and Fuel
Honduras had output of about US$39.6 billion in 2025 and roughly 11 million people, World Bank data show. Remittances reached US$9.33 billion between January and 10 September 2026, up 11.4 percent, the central bank reported.
The Banco Central de Honduras set its reference rate at 26.89 lempiras to the US dollar on 30 September 2026. Inflation reached 6.2 percent in August, and the bank raised its policy rate to 6 percent in September.
Fuel prices rose for an eleventh straight week in late September, even though the state now absorbs 70 percent of each rise. Regular petrol in Tegucigalpa costs 135.26 lempiras (about US$5.03) a gallon.
On 29 September Asfura signed an energy law that freezes power tariffs for six months and splits the state utility, ENEE. “This law will not solve all the problems, but this is the first step forward,” he said, La Prensa reported.
The utility ran a deficit of 11.19 billion lempiras (about US$416 million) from January to July 2026, the civil-society group ASJ reported. While tariffs are frozen, the Finance Ministry is to absorb any rise in costs.
Doctors, budgets and secrecy
Public hospitals cut outpatient care from 7 September, when doctors began assemblies over unpaid salaries. In late September the medical college said 1,067 contracted doctors still had no payment date, while the government said it was paying.
The draft 2027 budget totals 455.37 billion lempiras (about US$16.9 billion). Its Article 109 would keep the spending of Congress and the presidency classified, as the 2026 budget already does.
What It Means for Foreigners and Investors
For investors, Asfura’s Honduras has rejoined ICSID, kept its IMF programme and openly courts US capital. The energy reform aims to repair the state utility, but its losses remain a burden on public finances.
The risks are political as much as economic. A Congress without a single-party majority, rapid changes at the top of the courts and the Próspera dispute add uncertainty.
For visitors and residents, violence remains concentrated in certain cities, while the Bay Islands are far calmer. Our country guide to Honduras covers safety, visas and costs in more detail.
Anyone earning in dollars benefits from a lempira that weakens only slowly. Anyone exporting to the United States should watch the tariff talks and the end of TPS, which could cut remittances in 2027.
What to Watch
Watch whether Asfura keeps his promise to switch recognition back to Taiwan, and what China does in response. Watch, too, whether the new anti-gang laws cut killings and how the courts handle the first cases.
The International Monetary Fund programme expires on 31 December 2026, and Honduras has not said whether it will seek another. The 2027 budget vote will show whether the secrecy clause survives.
From the left, Ismael Moreno, former head of Radio Progreso, told Criterio the government acts “behind the backs” of most Hondurans. Asfura told the United Nations in September that Honduras “has regained faith in its institutions”.
The constitution’s text bars re-election, though a 2015 Supreme Court ruling let Hernández win a second term in 2017. Until the next election in November 2029, Asfura is betting that Washington and his appeal to “invest in Honduras” will deliver jobs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Nasry Asfura?
Nasry Asfura is the president of Honduras, in office since 27 January 2026. He is a construction businessman from the conservative National Party and was mayor of Tegucigalpa from 2014 to 2022.
How did Asfura win the 2025 election?
He won the vote of 30 November 2025 with about 40.3 percent, some 26,000 votes ahead of Salvador Nasralla. The count took 24 days, and Donald Trump endorsed him before the vote.
Has Honduras restored relations with Taiwan?
Not as of September 2026. Asfura promised to restore ties during his campaign. In June 2026, however, the foreign ministry said there were no official talks with Taipei.
Is Nasry Asfura facing corruption charges?
Prosecutors accused him in 2024 of diverting municipal funds as mayor, which his lawyer disputes. An appeals court annulled the proceedings and sent the case to the Supreme Court, and he has not been convicted.
When is the next election in Honduras?
The next general election is due in November 2029. The constitution’s text bars re-election, although a 2015 Supreme Court ruling allowed Juan Orlando Hernández to win a second term in 2017.
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