Quito - Ecuador is set to vote in a presidential contest Sunday, with incumbent Rafael Correa heavily favoured for re- election. Correa, 46, looked poised to secure victory in the first round without a runoff. The election is already historic in Ecuador as the first in which an incumbent president has sought re-election.

Recent surveys show the socialist Correa with a wide enough edge to meet Ecuador's constitutional standards to avoid a second-round election. He would need to capture either a majority of the vote or a plurality of more than 40 per cent with a margin of at least 10 percentage points over the second-place candidate.

Correa has been polling at 48 to 51 per cent, with former president Lucio Gutierrez (2003-05) as the closest challenger, with no higher than 14 per cent.

Since winning the presidency in November 2006, Correa has won three national votes including a constitutional referendum. The new constitution is the 20th since Ecuador was founded in 1830.

If Correa can finish off his challengers in Sunday's election, he will win a four-year term. Under the new constitution, he would be still be eligible to seek re-election to another four-year mandate.

Voting is set to start at 1200 GMT and end 10 hours later, with exit survey data expected to be made available soon after polling stations close. Observers from the European Union and the Organization of American States were in attendance.

Preliminary official results for the presidential election were expected to be issued late Sunday, though broader results were likely to take longer, with 6,000 elected positions at stake. (dpa)