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Peru election has wide meaning Peruvians must decide on taking hard-left turn Leftist-nationalist rising fast in Peruvian polls

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QUITO, Ecuador — Having forced their last three elected presidents from office, Ecua-doreans are choosing a new one today, and the favorite is a leftist pledging to lead a "citizens' revolution" against a political establishment widely seen as corrupt and incompetent.

Rafael Correa — tall, charismatic and youthful at 43 — is surging into the lead as a fresh-faced outsider in what could be the latest gain for Latin America's leftward shift. But Correa, an American-trained economist, faces a strong challenge from Alvaro Noboa, a banana billionaire who is also pushing a populist line, although from the capitalist end.

"Citizens are fed up. We need a profound political reform, including a new generation of leaders," Correa told The Associated Press on Saturday. During a rally earlier last week, Correa took a sharper approach. "We will do away with the lying oligarchy!" he shouted Thursday night, getting soaked as he closed his campaign in a downpour with 3,000 supporters.

Many voters share his critical view of Ecuadorean democracy as a system that benefits parties, not people.

But despite Correa's confidence, no candidate in the field of 13 was expected to win outright today.

Noboa, 55 and making his third run for president, has moved into a close second place, overtaking center-left former Vice President Leon Roldos, 64. Cynthia Viteri, 40, a conservative former congresswoman who is strongly pro-business, is a distant fourth.

To avoid a runoff Nov. 26, a candidate would need 50 percent or at least 40 percent of the valid vote and a 10-point lead over the rest.

Correa had nowhere near 40 percent in the latest polls, which under Ecuadorean law cannot be published here in the 20 days before today's election.

Latin America has seen a string of left-wing presidents elected in recent times, notably in Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and Argentina. Some of them are admirers of Venezuela's fiercely anti-American president, Hugo Chavez, while others have sought to distance themselves from him. Correa is an outspoken Chavez admirer.