US embassy cable - 05TEGUCIGALPA2461

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEGUCIGALPA 002461 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA, WHA/PPC, WHA/USOAS, AND WHA/CEN 
NSC FOR DAN FISK 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/07/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, KDEM, ECON, KCRM, PINR, HO 
SUBJECT: HONDURAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS FINALLY OVER: LOBO 
PUBLICLY CONCEDES AND CONGRATULATES ZELAYA 
 
REF: TEGUCIGALPA 2453 AND PREVIOUS 
 
Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission James G. Williard; 
Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1. (C) Summary: National Party presidential candidate 
Porfirio "Pepe" Lobo conceded the presidential election to 
Liberal Party presidential candidate Manuel "Mel" Zelaya at 
noon on December 7 in public comments.  Zelaya graciously 
accepted Lobo's concession moments later in public comments. 
Lobo's statement was preceded the evening of December 6 by a 
public statement by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), 
with the support of all three TSE magistrates, that reported 
on the status of the election tabulation process.  While it 
did not decisively declare Zelaya the winner, it stated that 
the remaining votes would not change the final result.  That 
statement followed the December 5 evening private meeting 
between Lobo and Zelaya.  The National Party finally realized 
the presidential race was lost, but Post expects the 
Nationalists to fight hard over specific electoral table vote 
counts key to mayoral and congressional races.  End Summary. 
 
TSE Releases Statement 12/6: Zelaya Win Won't Change 
 
SIPDIS 
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2. (U) The evening of December 6, the Supreme Electoral 
Tribunal (TSE) released a statement reporting on the status 
of the presidential vote count tabulation.  In addition to 
reporting that it had tabulated 88.66 percent of the 
electoral tables and that Zelaya leads Lobo by 3.73 percent 
(Zelaya has 918,408 votes at 49.90 percent and Lobo has 
849,816 votes at 46.17 percent), the TSE also reported that 
although the rest of the votes still need to be tallied, the 
outcome will not change.  The TSE called upon all political 
parties (specifically their candidates and leaders) to pacify 
any tensions and proceed in an exemplary manner, as "all of 
Honduras" continues to wait patiently for the full vote count 
- expected by next week. 
 
3. (SBU) In a conversation with PolChief December 6, TSE 
President Aristedes Mejia confirmed that all three 
magistrates supported the statement, as was later made clear 
in press coverage of the statement.  The morning of December 
7, National Party congressional candidate and key party 
official David Matamoros confirmed that the National Party 
fully supported the TSE statement as well.  The press has 
reported heavily on the statement, but has done so in a much 
more decisive manner than the TSE with headlines such as El 
Heraldo's "TSE: Zelaya is Winner," La Prensa's "TSE: Mel 
Won," and La Tribuna's "TSE Makes Official the Triumph of 
Mel." 
 
Lobo Concedes and Calls Zelaya 
------------------------------ 
 
4. (U) At noon on December 7, Lobo held a very brief press 
conference after meeting with the 128 National Party 
congressional candidates.  Lobo announced that he had phoned 
Liberal Party "President-elect" Zelaya to congratulate him on 
his victory.  He thanked everyone who voted for him and 
thanked the Honduran people for a "good" election.  Lobo 
added that he supports democracy and, while he will support 
the Zelaya Administration, he called for a strong opposition 
force to keep the government in check.  Zelaya shortly 
thereafter held his own press conference, accepting Lobo's 
concession, talking about his future administration, and 
calling for all Hondurans to work together. 
 
Zelaya Cabinet Shuffle Continues 
-------------------------------- 
 
5. (U) Meanwhile, Zelaya continues to shuffle his prospective 
cabinet.  As of December 7, the following changes and 
additions have been announced: 
- Yani Rosenthal named as Minster of the Presidency (chief of 
staff) instead of Minister of Commerce and Industry; No 
apparent reason given for the change. 
- Gabriela Nunez has reportedly turned down Minister of the 
Central Bank of Honduras. 
- Rodolfo Pastor Fasquelle, a writer, has been named the 
Minister of Culture Arts and Sports; the same position he 
held in the Reina administration. 
- Roberto Babum has been named an Official Advisor to the 
President. 
- Enrique Flores Lanza has also been named an Official 
Advisor to the President. 
6. (SBU) Meanwhile, the El Heraldo gossip column reported 
that the buzz was that Jorge Arturo Reina was out as Foreign 
Minister because he could not travel to the U.S. 
 
It's Finally Over 
----------------- 
 
7. (C) Comment: Although the TSE has not made anything 
official, between its forwarding-leaning press statement and 
Lobo's press conference conceding the race, it is now safe to 
call Mel Zelaya President-elect Zelaya.  Who will form 
Zelaya's Cabinet and who will make up the Congress still 
remains unsettled.  Squabbles over specific vote counts from 
electoral tables, key to many mayoral and congressional 
races, will continue for quite some time.  End Summary. 
 
 
 
 
 
Ford