Government & politics — Honduras

• History: Several previous; latest approved 11 January 1982,
• effective 20 January 1982 Amendments: Proposed by the National Congress with at least two-thirds majority vote of the membership; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote of Congress in its next annual session; constitutional articles, such as the form of government, national sovereignty, the presidential term, and the procedure for amending the constitution, cannot be amended; amended several times, last in 2021

• Chief of State: President Iris Xiomara CASTRO de Zelaya (since 27 January 2022); Vice Presidents Salvador NASRALLA, Doris GUTIÉRREZ, and Renato FLORENTINO (all since 27 January 2022); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government;
• CASTRO is Honduras' first female president Head of Government: President Iris Xiomara CASTRO de Zelaya (since 27 January 2022); Vice Presidents Salvador NASRALLA, Doris GUTIÉRREZ,
• Cabinet appointed by president Elections/Appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 4-year term; election last held on 28 November 2021 (next to be held on 30 November 2025); note - in 2015, the Constitutional Chamber of the Honduran Supreme Court struck down the constitut
• ional provisions on presidential term limits Election results: 2021: Iris Xiomara CASTRO de Zelaya elected president; percent of vote - Iris Xiomara CASTRO de Zelaya (LIBRE) 51.1%, Nasry Juan ASFURA Zablah (PNH) 36.9%, Yani Benjamin ROSENTHAL Hidalgo (PL) 10%, other 2% 2017: Juan Orlando HERNANDEZ Alvarado reelected president; percent of vote - Juan Orlando HERNANDEZ Alvarado (PNH) 43%, Salvador NASRALLA (Alianza de Oposicion contra la Dictadura) 41.4%, Luis Orlando ZELAYA Medrano (PL) 14.7%, other 0.9%

Description

uUnicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional (128 seats; members directly elected in 18 multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)

Elections

Last held on 28 November 2021 (next to be held on 30 November 2025)

Election Results

• Percent of vote by party - LIBRE 39.8%, PNH 31.3%, PL 16.4%, PSH 10.9%, DC 0.8%, PAC 0.8%
• seats by bloc or party - LIBRE 51, PNH 40, PL 21, PSH 14, DC 1, PAC 1;

Composition

men 93, women 35, percent of women 27.3%

Note

Seats by bloc or party as of 1 May 2022 - LIBRE 50, PNH 44, PL 22, PSH 10, DC 1, PAC 1

• Hhighest court(s): Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (15 principal judges, including the court president, and 6 alternates; court organized into civil, criminal, constitutional, and labor chambers); note - the court has both judicial and
• constitutional jurisdiction Jdge selection and term of office: Court president elected by his peers; judges elected by the National Congress from candidates proposed by the Nominating Board, a diverse 7-member group of judicial officials and other government and non-government officials nominated by each of their organizations; judges elected by Congress for renewable, 7-
• year terms Subordinate courts: Courts of appeal; courts of first instance; justices of the peace

18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Atlantida, Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan, Gracias a Dios, Intibuca, Islas de la Bahia, La Paz, Lempira, Ocotepeque, Olancho, Santa Barbara, Valle, Yoro

• Anti-Corruption Party or PAC [Marlene ALVARENGA]
• Christian Democratic Party or DC [Carlos PORTILLO]
• Democratic Liberation of Honduras or Liderh [Lempira VIANA]
• Democratic Unification Party or UD [Alfonso DIAZ Narvaez]
• The Front or El Frente [Kelin PEREZ]
• Honduran Patriotic Alliance or AP [Romeo VASQUEZ Velasquez]
• Innovation and Unity Party or PINU [Guillermo VALLE]
• Liberal Party or PL [Yani Benjamin ROSENTHAL Hidalgo]
• Liberty and Refoundation Party or LIBRE [Jose Manuel ZELAYA Rosales]
• National Party of Honduras or PNH [Juan Nasry ASFURA]
• New Route or NR [Esdras Amado LOPEZ]
• Opposition Alliance against the Dictatorship or Alianza de Oposicion contra la Dictadura [Salvador NASRALLA] (electoral coalition)
• Savior Party of Honduras or PSH [Salvador Alejandro Cesar NASRALLA Salum]
• Vamos or Let’s Go [Jose COTO]
• We Are All Honduras (Todos Somos Honduras) or TSH [Marlon Oniel ESCOTO Valerio]

• Yes Residency requirement for naturalization: 1 to 3 years

• Tegucigalpa
• note - article eight of the Honduran constitution states that the twin cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela, jointly, constitute the capital of the Republic of Honduras
• however, virtually all governmental institutions are on the Tegucigalpa side, which in practical terms makes Tegucigalpa the capital

BCIE, CACM, CD, CELAC, EITI (candidate country), FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC (suspended), IOM, IPU, ISO (subscriber), ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), PCA, Petrocaribe, SICA, UN, UNCTAD, UNHRC, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCO (suspended), WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Chief of mission

Ambassador Laura F. DOGU (since 12 April 2022) Embassy: Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa M.D.C. Mailing address: 3480 Tegucigalpa Place, Washington DC 20521-3480

Telephone

[504] 2236-9320,

FAX

[504] 2236-9037

Email address and website

• usahonduras@state.gov
• https://hn.usembassy.gov/

Chief of Mission

Ambassador Javier Efrain BU SOTO (since 12 December 2022)

Chancery

1220 19th Street NW, Suite #320, Washington, DC 20036

Telephone

[1] (202) 966-7702

FAX

[1] (202) 966-9751

Email address and website

• https://hondurasembusa.org/

Consulate(s) general

Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco Consulate(s): Dallas, McAllen (TX)