THE Sandinistas, whose militant socialist regime in Nicaragua went from victory in a revolution to defeat at the ballot box, have undergone a startling facelift that has propelled them into contention in this month's highly polarised presidential election.
Mr Daniel Ortega Saavedra a leader of the revolution that toppled Anastasio Somoza, a dictator supported by the United States, in 1979, has ditched his battle fatigues for a white dress shirt as he runs for president. His long hair has been trimmed for a more conservative, fashionable look.
Stealing a page from Mrs Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, who unseated him in the presidential, election in 1990, Mr Ortega hash launched a series of television commercials promising "A Government for Everyone", suffused with soft light and very few words from the candidate.
The blistering party anthem that declared the United States the "enemy of humanity" has been replaced by Ode to Joy from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which is played endlessly at campaign rallies.
The talk of "socialism or death" has been replaced by promises of respect for the free market and of friendly relations with Washington.
Instead of selecting a paragon of the revolution to be Mr Ortega's running mate, the Sandinistas chose Mr Juan Manuel Caldern, a rancher whose land was confiscated by the Sandinista government.
All the hardline Sandinista leaders, including Mr Tomas Borge and Mr Ortega's brother, Humberto, have been largely absent from the campaign.
It seems to be working.
After spending months as the decided underdog in the election on October 20th, when a National Assembly will also be chosen, Mr Ortega, once 20 points behind, is now shown in public opinion polls to be about even with Mr Amoldo Aleman, the rightist candidate.
Polls show support for both candidates at roughly 38 per cent to 40 per cent. If no one wins 45 per cent of the vote, a second round will be held in November.
While polls are notoriously unreliable here - in 1990, most showed the Sandinistas winning handily - Mr Aleman recently admitted, "Daniel is getting closer".