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The centrist candidate in Honduras's tightly contested presidential election, Salvador Nasralla, has alleged "corrupt people" of manipulating the vote count in the Central American nation.

Nine days after the election, the electoral council has still not declared a winner, but the most recent tally suggest that Nasry "Tito" Asfura, the conservative candidate backed by US President Donald Trump, holds a slim advantage.

Nasralla, who had been leading earlier on before dropping into second place, declared on social media: "This is theft."

The left-wing candidate placed in third, Rixi Moncada, has called for the vote to be invalidated and accused Trump of the election.

Narrow Results and Growing Unrest

With the vast majority of votes counted, Asfura had 40.53% of the vote, leading Nasralla with 39.16% and Moncada with just under twenty percent, according to the election body's update.

Patience has worn thin over the last week as the counting was repeatedly halted, sometimes for days on end.

Representatives of the CNE blamed "IT issues."

They have also cautioned that numerous voting records with "discrepancies" still need to be reviewed.

Trump's Endorsement and Surprise Pardon

The run-up to the election was overshadowed by Trump's endorsement of Nasry "Tito" Asfura.

Shortly before the vote, Trump backed the former mayor of Tegucigalpa, stating that "We can work together to fight the Narcocommunists."

"Our support will be strong should Asfura win, but we will not be throwing good money after bad, because a wrong Leader can only bring catastrophic results," Trump added.

In a surprise move two days before the election, Trump also granted clemency to jailed former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who is from the same party as Asfura.

Hernández was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for conspiring to import cocaine.

His clemency and freedom has stunned Honduran authorities, who issued an international arrest warrant for Hernández, who remains in the US.

Rising Tensions and Claims of Meddling

At the same time, tension has been rising as the lead in the vote count changed a number of times.

Trump accused the CNE of "trying to change" the outcome when Nasralla overtook Asfura early on.

"If they do, there will be hell to pay," the US president said without providing evidence of any fraud.

Ever since the Trump-endorsed Asfura took the lead, it has been his two rivals crying foul.

Rixi Moncada's Libre party called for the "complete cancellation" of the elections.

It also urged its supporters to protest publicly against what it called "the interference and coercion of the President of the United States."

Nasralla blamed unnamed "bad actors" for "delaying the counting process."

According to the nation's regulations, the CNE has until 30 December to declare a winner.