Greek voters will have go to the polls again after the ruling New Democracy party scored a landslide election win at the weekend, but still fell short of the seats needed to form a majority government.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called for a "definitive government solution" after what he called a "political earthquake".
His conservative New Democracy party beat the left-wing Syriza Party by 20 percentage points in Sunday's election, but under the country's new proportional representation system, its 40 per cent share of the vote was still not enough to secure a majority in the 300-seat parliament.
The prime minister said the current system, which would see New Democracy forced to negotiate a coalition agreement to form government, was akin to "party horse-trading".
"Without a doubt, the political earthquake that occurred today calls on us all to speed up the process for a definitive government solution so our country can have an experienced hand at its helm as soon as possible," he said.
The second election is likely to be in late June or early July.
The new vote will be conducted under an old electoral law that gives bonus seats to the winning party, making it easier for it to form a government on its own.
Jubilant New Democracy supporters massed outside party headquarters in Athens, cheering and waving party flags.
Syriza leader and former prime minister Alexis Tsipras called Mr Mitsotakis on Sunday night to congratulate him.
"The result is exceptionally negative for Syriza," he said.
"Fights have winners and losers."
Mr Tsipras said his party would examine what led to the results.
"However, the electoral cycle is not yet over," he said.
"We don't have the luxury of time.
'We must immediately carry out all the changes that are needed so we can fight the next crucial and final electoral battle with the best terms possible."
Mr Mitsotakis has been Greece's prime minister since 2019.
Sunday's election was Greece's first since the country emerged from a period of strict supervision by international lenders, who had provided bailout funds during the country's nearly decade-long financial crisis.
Mr Tsipras served as prime minister during some of the most tumultuous years of the crisis, and has struggled to regain the wide support he enjoyed when he was swept to power in 2015 on a promise of reversing bailout-imposed austerity measures.
ABC/Reuters
