(19 Oct 1996) Spanish/Nat

Final preparations are underway for Sunday's election in Nicaragua.

Voters have a choice of 23 candidates for president, but only two men really stand a chance of winning.

It's a contest between leftist Sandinista candidate Daniel Ortega and Liberal conservative candidate Arnoldo Aleman.

Right now they're running neck and neck.

The conservative and left-wing rivals for the top spot, have depicted the vote as a choice between the war-torn leftist regime of the 1980s and the right-wing dictatorship that preceded it.

Newspapers on the streets of Managua, Nicaragua are screaming headlines of Sunday's election.

The vote is viewed as a critical step along the road of democracy for the central American nation.

The main event is the presidential election, with Liberal candidate Arnoldo Aleman and leftist Sandinista candidate, Daniel Ortega, standing out among the 23 candidates.

Either of the front runners could win, with a large body of undecided voters looming.

A license plate on a truck carrying ballots sums up the essence of the election, reading "Free Nicaragua".

Soldiers are being put to work preparing the many thousands of ballots that will be used by the electorate on Sunday.

Voters will get six ballots covering 32-thousand national and local candidates for about 2-thousand posts, ranging from president to city councils.

There will also be some 4-thousand independent election observers checking to see ensure there are no irregularities.

Voters are being issued registration cards.

As of Friday about 180 thousand eligible voters still did not have their credentials, but there are assurances they will get them in time.

Although both candidates have put the economy at the top of the list of problems plaguing Nicaragua, that is where the similarities end.

50 year old Aleman defines himself as a liberal and bristles when reminded that the late dictator Anastasio Somoza was also a member of the liberal party.

The former mayor of Managua has spent much of the campaign whipping up fears about a leftist Sandinista return.

While 50 year old Daniel Ortega has tried to tie Aleman to the brutal Somoza family dictatorship that preceded his Sandinista rule.

For Ortega it has been a campaign where he has changed both his appearance and his rhetoric.

Gone are the military uniforms and his message is one of reconciliation.

Whoever wins will replace Violeta Chamorro who was elected president in 1990.

Voters have been taking a keen interest in the election.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
Q. Who are you voting for? A. "The front" (Sandinistas).
SUPER CAPTION: Vox Pop

With the economy on the minds of most voters Aleman says he hopes to create 100 thousand jobs during the first year, while Ortega vows to create 150-thousand new jobs.

SOUNDBITE: (Spanish)
Q. Are you going to vote? A. Of course.
Q. Why are you voting? A. For more jobs.
SUPER CAPTION: Vox Pop

The Supreme Electoral Council is expecting a strong indication of the election winner, six hours after the polls close Sunday night.

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