SAN JOSE (Reuters) - Former Costa Rican President Jose Maria Figueres and conservative contender Fabricio Alvarado led a preliminary partial tally of votes in Sunday's presidential election, figures published by the electoral tribunal showed.

       No candidate is expected to win the more than 40% of votes needed to avoid a run-off, but if the initial trend in the vote count holds, Figueres and Alvarado could face off in a second round in early April to decide the presidency.

       (Reporting by Alvaro Murillo)