United Liberty

Over the weekend, voters in Honduras elected a conservative to lead the country, months after Manuel Zelaya was deposed for violating the Constitution:

Porfirio Lobo, a longtime conservative politician, appeared to have won on Sunday in the Honduran presidential election, which many hoped could help the country emerge from the crisis caused by last summer’s coup and end its isolation.

The electoral tribunal said Sunday night that Mr. Lobo had 52 percent of the vote, with almost two-thirds of the votes counted. That gave him a margin of more than 16 percentage points over his main opponent, Elvin Santos. Shortly before midnight, Mr. Santos conceded, Reuters reported.

The coup has divided Honduran society between those who support the restoration of the president, Manuel Zelaya, and those who say the coup was the only recourse against a populist president seeking to remain in power beyond his term.

You’ve got to love how the New York Times still refers to Zelaya’s removal as a coup. It wasn’t, as I’ve pointed out before. I’m not defending the tactics used to silence dissent, but the Honduran Constitution was clear that what Zelaya was trying to do is illegal and the courts and military acted within their charge.

Hopefully the Obama Administration will stay out of Honduran affairs and let the sovereign country govern itself.