Conservative Lobo leads in disputed Honduran election (Extra)

Nov 30, 2009, 1:14 GMT

Tegucigalpa - Porfirio Lobo of the conservative National Party leads in Sunday's disputed presidential election in Honduras, according to preliminary official results.

With 9 per cent of the vote counted, the businessman Lobo had close to 56 per cent of the vote compared to closest rival Elvin Santos' 38 per cent, according to the first results made public late Sunday by Honduras' Supreme Electoral Tribunal.

There was no immediate data on the turnout rate, which was regarded as crucial for the legitimacy of the election results.

Ousted president Manuel Zelaya had called on Hondurans to boycott the vote, and he predicted that about 65 per cent of registered voters would abstain.

Zelayas' opponents, on the other hand, saw the election as a chance for the country to overcome its continuing political crisis, exacerbated when Zelaya was seized by the military on June 28 and expelled from the country.

For now, only a few countries - including the United States and Panama - have said they will recognize the outcome of the election. Most Latin American countries reject the election altogether, while a few others in the region - like Mexico - and the European Union want to wait until Hondurans vote.