US attempt to sway Nicaraguan voters

The leftist candidate, Daniel Ortega, has been shown to have a 40% lead in the polls of the Nicaraguan Presidential elections. The lead has been made apparent following the count of the first 15% of the votes. His nearest candidate, the conservative candidate, Eduardo Montealegre, is trailing with 33% of the votes.

The United States government has already threatened that aid to Nicaragua may be cut if Mr Ortega does become president, mirroring the action taken after Hamas had won the democratic election of Palestine.

Mr Ortega, a former Marxist rebel, was last president 16 years ago. During his presidency the country broke into civil war when the Sandinista forces fought with the US backed Contras rebels, in which around 50,000 persons lost their lives.

80% of Nicaraguans currently live on less than $2 (approximately £1.06) per day and have lived under rampant US backed capitalism for at least the last 5 years under the incumbent, President Enrique Bolanos, a point that no doubt gave Venezuela’s president, Hugo Chavez, reason to endorse Mr Ortega’s candidacy.
17,000 independent observers have overseen the elections.