Leftist Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega, a U.S. Cold War foe, is heading for victory in Nicaragua's presidential elections, with a partial count on Monday giving him a lead strong enough to return to power.

With around 15 percent of polling stations counted, Ortega had 40 percent of Sunday's votes, which would secure him a first-round win.

Trailing behind was Eduardo Montealegre, of the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance, who got about 33 percent of votes counted.

Ortega needs at least 35 percent of the vote and an advantage of 5 percentage points over his closest rival to avoid a runoff in December.

The race, 16 years after a U.S.-backed rebellion helped force him from office, was Ortega's fifth consecutive presidential campaign.

Ortega's victory, if confirmed by final results, would give Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez a strong ally in the region.

Montealegre, who was Washington's favored candidate, refused to concede defeat and insisted he would force a runoff vote next month.

"In a democracy, that is unacceptable ... We are going to a second round," he told supporters.

Source: Xinhua