Italy's lawmakers fail to elect a new head of state for a third day, with no consensus candidate emerging to replace outgoing President Sergio Mattarella
PM Mario Draghi, who was the frontrunner for the post ahead of the election, pocketed just five votes as the country's parties panicked at the idea of pulling him from his job at such a sensitive time.
Italy's lawmakers have failed to elect a new head of state for a third day, with no consensus candidate emerging to replace outgoing President Sergio Mattarella. On Wednesday, many of the 1,009 lawmakers and regional delegates cast blank ballots as they had in the previous two voting rounds, a way of playing for time while their leaders negotiate.
A fourth round of voting, which begins at 1000 GMT on Thursday, may prove less predictable because the threshold required for election is considerably lower.remains in the frame but worries that his promotion to president might cause his coalition government to disintegrate and trigger an early parliamentary election have clouded his prospects.
"We would have weeks of confusion if Draghi were to leave the government," said rightist League leader Matteo Salvini on Wednesday.Of the main party chiefs the only one who is publicly supporting Draghi's candidacy for president is Enrico Letta of the centre-left Democratic Party .