Salvador Nasralla, presidential candidate for the Opposition Alliance Against the Dictatorship, speaks during a news conference with former Honduran president Manuel Zelaya after a meeting with electoral observers of the Organization of American States (OAS) at a hotel in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, December 12, 2017. REUTERS/Jorge Cabrera

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Honduran opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla called on United States on Tuesday not to recognize results announced in his country’s presidential election and to suspend aid until a new vote can be held.

Speaking at news conference in Washington, Nasralla accused his opponent, U.S.-friendly President Juan Orlando Hernandez, of holding on to power illegally after gross fraud in the Nov. 26 poll.

Hernandez declared himself president elect on Tuesday despite a call for new elections by the Organization of American States (OAS) that followed allegations of fraud and deadly protests.