ROME -- The Latest on Italy's national election on Sunday (all times local):

Analysts say early projections from Italy's election indicate that a hung parliament is the most likely outcome and that the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement's strong showing may send a negative signal to financial markets.

Wolfango Piccoli of the Teneo consultancy noted early Monday that building a majority in the Italian Parliament "will be hard if not impossible," and that tough negotiations were expected.

The early projections had the 5-Star Movement as the strongest single party but a centre-right coalition comprising three parties was leading overall. Neither had enough of a lead to govern alone.

Economic analyst Lorenzo Codogno, a former Treasury official, said the 5-Star's showing was better than expected and that "financial markets are likely to take these figures negatively."

He warned that talks on forming a government would be "long and complex."

A top leader of Italy's 5-Star Movement says if exit poll data prove accurate, it's an election "triumph" for the populist force.

Alessandro Di Battista, addressing 5-Star supporters early Monday, exulted over indications the anti-establishment movement was the leading party in Italy's election for Parliament.

But the 30 per cent support indicated by a RAI state TV exit poll is far short of the absolute majority needed to form Italy's next government.

The 5-Star Movement has officially vowed not to join any post-election coalitions. But Di Battista welcomed other parties to come talk as long as they use 5-Star "methods" of "transparency" and "correctness" in political conduct.

One possible partner is the anti-migrant League led by Matteo Salvini. He is dueling with ex-Premier Silvio Berlusconi for leadership of the centre-right bloc that early projections had as the largest bloc in the new Parliament.

Projections from Italy's election indicate that the populist 5-Star Movement was the top party but hasn't received the majority it would need to govern alone.

RAI State TV's first projections with 7 per cent of the vote counted early Monday showed the 5-Star Movement with 31.8 per cent of the vote.

The projection did not look at how coalitions fared in Sunday's election. The anti-immigrant, euroskeptic League had 15.9 per cent of the vote and its coalition partner, former Premier Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, came in at 14.2 per cent.

The Democratic Party, which is leading the current government, had just 19.6 per cent.

An RAI exit poll gave the centre-right coalition of which the League and Forza Italia are part a slight edge over the 5-Star Movement.

Italy's Interior Ministry says the turnout for the national election was 71.48 per cent, a drop from the 75 per cent of eligible voters who participated in the 2013 election.

Sunday's election was held to seat Italy's next parliament and to choose the parties that will form the next government. Before Election Day, analysts had expressed fears of voters being increasingly disillusioned with the political system.

An exit poll by Italy's RAI state TV shows a centre-right coalition has a slight edge over the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement in the Italian election.

The exit poll by the Piepoli polling agency on Sunday had the three-party coalition with 33 per cent to 36 per cent of the vote, compared with the 5-Star Movement's 29.5 per cent to 32.5 per cent.

Former Premier Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party and Matteo Salvini's anti-immigrant League are the two biggest partners in the coalition.

The exit poll's margin of error of 3 per cent puts the two political forces neck-and-neck.

The centre-left coalition led by the Democratic Party, currently heading the government, was lagging at 24.5 per cent to 27.5 per cent.

An exit poll by Italy's RAI state TV shows the populist 5-Star Movement leading the Italian election but not with a strong enough lead to govern alone.

The exit poll by the Piepoli polling agency had the 5-Star Movement with between 29.5 per cent and 32.5 per cent of Sunday's vote. The Democratic Party was the next largest party, with between 20 per cent and 23 per cent of the vote, according to the poll.

Former Premier Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia and the anti-immigrant League each were polling at between 12.5 per cent and 15.5 per cent. They were running as part of a three party centre-right coalition.

The exit poll has a margin of error of 3 per cent.

Italian authorities are urging voters to leave plenty of time to cast their ballots since the process is taking longer than usual due to new anti-fraud measures.

Voters have complained of long lines -- some of more than an hour -- at polling stations around the country.

Rome's city hall urged voters to head out as soon as possible, or at least an hour before polls close at 11 p.m. (2200 GMT) Sunday.

City authorities said the delays were due "in great part" to new anti-fraud measures. Under the new system, each ballot has a serial number that is entered in the registration books alongside the name of the voter who receives the ballot.

After the voter fills out the ballot and seals it, the detachable coupon with the serial number on it is removed and presented to the head of the polling station to make sure it matches the number in the registry.

The polling station chief then deposits the ballot in the box without any identifying information.

A topless Femen activist has disrupted polling in Italy's national election while ex-Premier Silvio Berlusconi was casting his ballot.

The woman, who had the words "Berlusconi, you've expired" written in black marker on her topless torso, jumped onto the table at the Milan polling station as Berlusconi was voting.

Photographers in the room to shoot the scene jostled for position amid the chaos. Berlusconi was escorted out.

News reports recalled that Femen activists disrupted Berlusconi's vote in 2013 as well.

Italy's interior ministry says the turnout for Italy's general election at noon (1100GMT) stands at 19.3 per cent, five hours after polls opened.

Long lines awaited voters in Rome, Milan and other cities, and some voters expressed confusion at the ballots.

It was not possible to compare Sunday's turnout to Italy's last general election because the 2013 vote took place over two days.

Some ballot glitches were reported in Palermo, Mantova and in two small towns of Alessandria, where the wrong ballots were delivered. The ANSA news agency said the vote in those towns was suspended when election officials discovered the error after some 40 ballots were cast.

Some Palermo polling stations opened late because of the ballot glitch.

Steve Bannon, the nationalist architect of Donald Trump's White House campaign, says Italy's election is "crucial" for the global populist movement and that if populists don't win now they will in the future.

In an interview published in Sunday's Corriere della Sera, Bannon says he came to Rome to "observe" the election. He says he's particularly keen to see how the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and anti-immigrant, nationalist League party fare.

He said: "I think if they create a coalition among all the populists it would be fantastic, it would terrify Brussels and pierce it in its heart."

Bannon, who crafted Trump's anti-Muslim ban and backs a U.S. border wall with Mexico, said Italians have had enough of Europe's migrant crisis. Describing himself as a "proud Catholic," he said Pope Francis had nevertheless "exacerbated the migrant crisis" with his call for Europe to open its arms to refugees.

He said: "The pope is infallible in doctrine, but not in church policy in the world."

The outgoing president of Italy's Senate is voicing concern that some polling stations in Palermo were still closed hours into election day due to delays in getting proper ballots delivered.

In a tweet Sunday, Pietro Grasso said such delays and errors were "unacceptable." Grasso, who broke away from the Democratic Party to start his own leftist party, said he hoped the problem wouldn't discourage people from voting.

Overnight, Palermo authorities had to reprint about 200,000 ballots because the wrong ones were delivered. That delayed the opening of some stations.

In Rome, meanwhile, voters complained that the ballots were too complicated to understand.

Sister Vincenza, voting at a polling station on Rome's Aventine hill, said the process was "all mixed up." She said: "You feel as if you have gone there prepared but it is not that clear. Anyway, I have to go to Mass."

-- This item was corrected to show that Grasso's party is left-wing, not centre-left.

The first glitches in Italy's closely watched elections have started to be reported.

In Palermo, 200,000 ballots had to be reprinted overnight because the wrong ones were delivered. In Mantova, where voters are also voting for the leadership of the Lombardy region, the logo of the Democratic Party regional candidate was printed erroneously.

The ANSA news agency said there would likely be court challenges to the outcome as a result.

More than 46 million Italians were voting Sunday in a general election that is being closely watched to determine if Italy would succumb to the populist, anti-establishment and far-right sentiment that has swept through much of Europe in recent years.

Polls have opened in Italy in in one of the most uncertain elections in years.

Sunday's vote is one being watched to see if Italy will succumb to the populist, euroskeptic and far-right sentiment that has swept through Europe in recent years.

The campaign was marked by the prime-time airing of neofascist rhetoric and anti-migrant violence that culminated in a shooting spree last month against six Africans. While the centre-right coalition that capitalized on the anti-migrant sentiment led the polls, analysts predict the likeliest outcome is a hung parliament.

More than 46 million Italians were eligible to vote from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. (0600-2200GMT), including Italians abroad who already mailed in ballots. Exit polls were expected after polls closed, projections sometime thereafter and consolidated results Monday. </s> Luigi Di Maio, leader of the Five Star Movement (M5S), a populist Italian political party, has refused to join a coalition with Forza Italia, a party headed by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The move comes a day ahead of talks between Italian President Sergio Mattarella and the country's main parties to discuss the creation of a government coalition.

READ MORE: 'I Remain Director': Berlusconi Reveals His Role After Italian Election

Earlier, Di Maio repeatedly signaled his willingness to sit down with all the parties on the matter in the wake of last month's general elections in Italy.

Forza Italia has yet to comment on the matter, while Lega Party leader Matteo Salvini said that they will have a "dialogue with Five Star, but reject vetoes or commands."

READ MORE: Lega Politician: Italy's Gov't to Focus on Ousting Islamists, Curbing Terrorism

During the March 4 polls, the country's center-right coalition, consisting of Lega, former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, the right-wing Brothers of Italy and Us with Italy, won 37.48 percent of the vote in the upper house and 36.96 percent in the lower house.

With almost 33 percent, the Five Star Movement, in turn, managed to obtain the largest share of the vote for any single political party during the elections. </s> The results were not just a disconcerting measure of Italy’s mood but also a harbinger of the troubles that may yet lay ahead for Europe. Far-right and populist forces appeared to gain more than 50 percent of the vote in Italy, where the economy has lagged, migration has surged and many are seething at those in power.

But with no one party or coalition appearing to win enough support to form a government, the election offered up an outcome familiar here: a muddle. It may take weeks of haggling to sort out who will lead the next government, and who will be in it.

One thing seemed clear, however: Any government will be difficult to form without the insurgent Five Star Movement, a web-based, populist party less than a decade old. The party was poised to become the country’s biggest vote-getter, winning about a third of the votes cast — its best showing ever.

“A triumph of the Five Star Movement,” Alessandro Di Battista, a leader of the party, said on Sunday night. “Everybody has to come talk to us.”

Roberto D’Alimonte, a political scientist at Luiss University in Rome, said that if the results held, the Five Star Movement would find itself in “a pivotal position.” With previously solid-seeming coalitions now fluid, he said, Five Star was in the driver’s seat.

The question will be who will join it.

The projections also showed big gains for the far-right League, a formerly northern-based secessionist party run by Matteo Salvini. He has been unapologetic about his use of inflammatory language about migrants, calling for their expulsion.

Mr. Salvini’s party gained about 18 percent of votes, according to preliminary results. That was more, remarkably, than the party of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, his coalition partner and the personification of the conservative mainstream, which won just 14 percent of ballots cast, the early results showed.

Taken together, the votes cast for the Five Star Movement, the League and its post-fascist coalition partner, the Brothers of Italy party, run by Giorgia Meloni, depicted a dark mood in Italy and deep frustration with the governing, pro-Europe, Democratic Party of the center left.

The Democratic Party suffered its poorest showing ever in national elections, continuing a Europe-wide collapse of the left, and putting into immediate question the future of its once-promising leader, former prime minister Matteo Renzi.

One glimmer of hope for Mr. Renzi is the possibility of forming a grand coalition with Mr. Berlusconi’s center-right Forza Italia party. But even together they lacked the numbers to form a government.

Nadia Urbinati, a political theorist at Columbia University and the author of the forthcoming book “The Age of Populism,” said the country had been “split in two” between traditional establishment voters on the right and left, and everyone else.

The new Italian political landscape does not mean that the anti-establishment forces will get the chance to govern together, or that they even want to. But their strength at the polls was a strong indicator of voter anger after a prolonged period of economic stagnation and the arrival of hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants from Africa and elsewhere.

For years, migrants who survived the perilous crossing of the sea arrived on Italy’s southern coasts. The country’s center-left government sought to strike a balance between a humane response and enforcement of its borders.

Italy pleaded with other countries in Europe to help share the burden, both by patrolling the waters and accepting a portion of the migrants sheltered in reception centers. But its neighbors, including France, locked their doors and the migrants, many of whom felt stuck in Italy, became an open political nerve.

The center-left government eventually reduced the arrivals through deals in Libya and further south. But by then the damage was done, and Europe, which is deeply wary of the Five Star Movement and the League, may now be about to pay the consequences.

“We are surely in front of an extraordinary result,” Alfonso Bonafede, a member of Parliament from the Five Star party said soon after the first exit polls at a conference room in a Rome hotel. “We can say historic even. The Five Star Movement will be the pillar of the next legislature.”

Mr. Berlusconi, Mr. Salvini and Ms. Meloni ran together with the idea of governing together. With their failure to reach the 40 percent threshold to claim power, it was not clear what would happen.

Supporters of Mr. Berlusconi argued after midnight on Monday on television that his coalition had essentially won the election. But Mr. Berlusconi himself did not appear to be the winner, even within his coalition.

That Mr. Salvini appeared to win more support than Mr. Berlusconi, a media mogul with three television channels and decades in government and business, was stunning.

Not long ago, Mr. Salvini was insulting southern Italians, saying they smelled bad. But he shed his party’s northern roots and drew on the frustration over illegal immigration to appeal to those he once mocked. His campaign was rife with anti-migrant and anti-Muslim language.

That’s what voters seemed to like.

Giulia De Virgilio and her husband, Vico Vicenzi, both 72-year-old lawyers, walked out of a polling station in Rome’s historic center on Sunday and said they had cast their votes for Mr. Salvini, despite usually voting for the left.

Their comments suggested that Mr. Salvini’s efforts to transform his party from a northern secessionist movement into a force appealing to Italians everywhere had paid off. He convinced the couple that illegal migrants posed an existential threat, especially after a young woman was killed and dismembered in a central Italian town in January. The police arrested Nigerian immigrants in the killing.

“They cut out her heart, her guts — they are cannibals,” said Ms. De Virgilio. She said, “Nigerians are drug dealers.”

That anti-immigrant sentiment, as well as a strong dose of euroskepticism, swept Italy this election season.

The Five Star Movement appealed to voters on both the left and the right, especially in the country’s poorer southern regions. Young voters flocked to their throw-out-the-bums message.

Five Star’s ability to elide hard positions on controversial issues such as immigration and leaving the eurozone, as well as its support for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, made it a difficult target for its political enemies.

Both Mr. Berlusconi and Mr. Renzi characterized Five Star as the greatest threat to Italy to come along in ages. But now it is Italy’s most popular party, and it has a good deal of leverage going into consultations with President Sergio Mattarella, who will ultimately decide the shape and content of the next government.

The newly formed Parliament will meet for the first time on March 23.

“Bottom line: Italy is far from having sorted its longstanding problems, and now it will have new ones,” said Lorenzo Codogno, founder and chief economist of LC Macro Advisors. “Be prepared for long and complex negotiations that will take months.” </s> Image copyright AFP Image caption League chief Matteo Salvini and Five Star leader Luigi Di Maio both want to lead Italy

The leaders of two anti-establishment parties have each claimed they have the right to govern Italy, after voters in Europe's fourth-largest economy did not return a majority to any single party.

The Eurosceptic, populist Five Star Movement was the biggest single party with a third of the vote.

But the right-wing populist League said it had been endorsed to run the country as part of a centre-right alliance.

Forming a government could take weeks of negotiation and coalition-building.

Former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has resigned as leader of the governing centre-left Democratic Party, which performed poorly, taking less than 20% of the vote.

He said the party would not join a coalition with "anti-system forces" and would go into opposition instead.

An alliance between the far-right League and ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party is set to win the most seats in the lower house of parliament, but the League has emerged as the senior partner. It won 17.4% of the vote compared with Forza Italia's 14%.

Matteo Salvini, the 44-year-old leader of the League, said at a press conference that he intended to speak to other parties to gain a parliamentary majority.

Five Star leader Luigi Di Maio, 31, announced that his party was also open to coalition talks with other parties - this despite the party having stated the contrary in the run-up to the vote.

The gains for populists represent a political earthquake that will send shockwaves to the EU in Brussels, BBC Europe editor Katya Adler says.

A coalition between Five Star and the League would be a "nightmare result" for the EU, our correspondent adds.

However, Mr Salvini has ruled out such an alliance. He said he was not interested in a "minestrone" coalition, referring to the Italian soup of mixed vegetables.

Results showed that the League conquered broad swathes of Italy's north, while Five Star saw its strongest show of support in the south.

The centre-left coalition, dominated by the Democratic Party, was punished in traditional strongholds including Emilia-Romagna, the northern region home to the city of Bologna.

Voter turnout was estimated at 73% on Monday morning, according to interior ministry figures.

What does the result mean?

Though no party will be able to rule alone based on latest results, the surge of support for populist parties has been compared with Brexit and the election of Donald Trump in the US.

The right-wing alliance, which also includes the far-right Brothers of Italy, is tipped to get 248-268 seats - below the 316 needed for a majority.

But Five Star will emerge as the largest single party in Italy's lower house, with 216-236 seats.

The party was founded in 2009 by comedian Beppe Grillo, who denounced cronyism in Italian politics. It has captured new voters in the poorer regions of southern Italy, feeding off anger over institutional corruption, economic hardship and immigration.

Italian voters appear to have abandoned Mr Renzi's Democratic Party because of dissatisfaction over these issues, and the centre-left coalition is projected to come a distant third, with an estimated 107-127 seats.

Immigration and the economy have been two of the key issues for voters during the election.

More than 600,000 migrants have travelled from Libya to reach Italy since 2013, which has upset many Italians.

The state of the economy was also at the centre of the debates. In 2016, some 18 million people were at risk of poverty, and unemployment is currently at 11%.

Results from the vote for Italy's Senate, the upper house of parliament, also favoured populists and parties of the right. Five Star performed better than anticipated and was forecast to take the most seats - around 102-122 - but miss out on a majority.

The right-wing coalition is predicted to get 118-150 seats in the upper house, and the Democratic Party 42-54.

Advantage Five Star - but what happens next?

By James Reynolds BBC News, Milan

We still don't know who the winner will be. But in this opening act, Five Star has gained a certain advantage. Its message clearly resonated with young people searching for jobs, and with voters in the poorer south of the country.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Matteo Renzi's Democratic Party is among the losers in this election

The movement made a big point of running alone in this election. By contrast, other major parties teamed up into electoral alliances. But the feature which gave the party its strength - its independence - may now become its weakness. In order to form a government, Five Star must find coalition partners. Its inexperience in working with others may be a disadvantage in the practical business of coalition-building.

So, which way will Five Star seek to turn? There is some speculation that the movement may seek a coalition with the League.

Both parties have criticised Italy's relationship with the European Union, although neither campaigns to leave the bloc. A potential alliance between the two would be viewed with some degree of worry in Brussels.

Berlusconi's party outshone by allies

The vote comes as a blow to Silvio Berlusconi, 81, whose party led the right-wing coalition. But now Matteo Salvini has laid claim to that role.

He has promised to deport hundreds of thousands of migrants and spoken of the "danger" of Islam.

"My first words: THANK YOU," tweeted Mr Salvini as projections rolled in.

In any case Mr Berlusconi cannot hold public office himself until next year because of a tax fraud conviction.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Berlusconi's handshake advice for BBC reporter

Who is Matteo Salvini?

The leader of the League is a proud Eurosceptic, who has praised Brexit and voiced opposition to the euro in the past.

"It's a fantastic victory which fills us with pride," said Mr Salvini on Monday as results came in.

He claimed Italian voters had "made a step forward to be free from the cages and ties that are bringing back hunger and insecurity in Europe".

In the same speech, Mr Salvini repeated his stance that the euro is bad for Italy.

"It's a wrong currency and a wrong choice," he said.

How Italy's press reacted - BBC Monitoring

La Stampa (centre-left): Di Maio wins, Italy is ungovernable

La Repubblica (centre-left): Italy belongs to the Five Star Movement and the League; the Democratic Party is knocked out, Renzi on his way out

Libero (centre-right): A chaotic government of amateurs - anger and confusion at the polls: From bad to worse

Il fatto quotidiano (populist): The Five Star Movement soars, Renzi crashes, Salvini wipes out Berlusconi: Everything changes

More on Italy's vote:

Italian town at centre of bitter race debate

Will fake claims affect poll?

Silvio Berlusconi: Italy's perpetual powerbroker </s> Lawmakers must accept a caretaker government that will administer a revote, Italy's president Sergio Mattarella said on Monday after his last-ditch talks with political leaders failed to broker a deal on a viable government.

The cabinet of centre-left premier Paolo Gentiloni cannot continue in office "as it represents a parliamentary majority that no longer exists," , Mattarella stated.

"I belive it is better to move towards fresh elections under a caretaker government," he said.

Mattarella ruled out a snap vote in June, saying there was not enough time to organise one. But he did not rule out July polls, which the leaders of Italy's populist Five-Star Movement and the far-right League party are now urging.

"An election could be held at the height of summer, but until now this has been avoided as it is a difficult time for Italians to vote, but a date could be set in the autumn," Mattarella stated.

Five-Star leader Luigi Di Maio and League leader Matteo Salvini said on Monday a new national ballot should be held on 8 July - a demand that one of the centre-left Democratic Party's founders, lawmaker Ettore Rosato, slammed as "arrogant".

Five Star is the largest party and the League is the dominant party in the centre-right alliance - the biggest parliamentary bloc - after the inconclusive 4 March vote in which populist, rightwing parties made strong gains.

The Democratic Party's centre-left coalition, which has ruled Italy since 2013, came a distant third in the March vote and declined to take the Five-Star Movement into government during previous failed talks. </s> The Five Star Movement (M5S) was started by Giuseppe Peiro Grillo, also known as ‘Beppe’, a popular comedian and Gianroberto Casaleggio, a web entrepreneur, in 2009. They created the very popular blog and social networking site Meetup.com. The aim was to bring together supporters and activists, campaign on local issues and field candidates for elections. The movement was created as a new form of direct democracy and a reaction against Italy’s corrupt politics.

Federico Faloppa, Director of Italian Studies at University of Reading, said: “The M5S is variously considered populist, anti-establishment, environmentalist, anti-globalist, Eurosceptic, and anti-vaccines, and it escapes the traditional left vs right paradigm.” In 2009, the ‘National Five Star Movement’ was launched and the party ran in the regional elections in 2010 and 2011, where they obtained notable results. Since then they have constantly and rapidly grown and in the 2013 general election, they were the second most voted for party and were the most voted for party for the Chamber of Deputies - they took 25 percent of the vote. However as the party refused to form a coalition, M5S obtained just 109 deputies out of 630 and the centre-right coalition gained more seats in parliament.

In European Parliament, the M5S is part of the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy group along with UKIP, however in 2017 Grillo proposed to join the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, but the party was refused. M5S has been openly against the EU, but has now become more Eurosceptic. Leader Luigi Di Maio, said M5S does not want to quit the European Union but wants to change the rules. M5S had initially signalled a possible exit from the single currency but as the election loomed Di Maio ditched the threat to leave the Euro.

The party leader told Italian television: “I believe it is no longer the right moment for Italy to leave the Euro.” Dr Faloppa said: “From the beginning, they have been vocally Eurosceptical and against the Euro, by proposing a referendum to leave the currency, but in the last few months - especially to reassure European partners and investors, in case the Movement wins the election - Luigi DI Maio has dropped the anti-Euro rhetoric, and softened the party's position towards the EU.” Paolo Cossarini, teaching fellow in Politics and International Relations at Loughborough University said in preparation for the 2018 general election, M5S have instead focused more on corruption, local government and internal affairs in Italy. Earlier this year, co-founder Grillo stepped aside from the party ahead of the Italian election.

Some have speculated the move was to bolster the party’s chance of winning before the general election. He had been distancing himself from the party for quite some time and had avoided appearances at the party’s events and in September Di Maio was elected as leader. Dr Cossarini said: “Grillo started to be criticised over the last year. He thought it would be better to step aside, not to be the spokesperson or the leader. “It would be better to leave it to Di Maio and the new generation to bring fresh air into Italian politics, and also because he felt they were losing the connection to the young people in Italy.” The Five Star Movement was leading the latest opinion polls, and the latest survey show the party gaining between 27% and 30% of the vote. </s> A rift between the two coalition partners, Five Star Movement (M5S) and the Lega, deepened this week after the M5S voted against a costly Turin-Lyon high-speed rail link project (TAV) backed by Salvini's party.

"Today, I told Prime Minister Conte: let's go straight to the parliament to record that there is no majority anymore, as the TAV vote showed, and quickly give the floor to the Italians," Salvini said in a statement.

Italians need certainty and a government that is productive, he stressed.

"We do not want any more seats or ministers, we do not need reshuffles or technical governments. After this government, which has done a lot of good, there can only be election. [Summer] recess cannot be an excuse for losing time, and parliamentarians, unless they want to save their mandate by any means, can return to work next week, like millions of other Italians," Salvini said.

The parliament's recess started on Thursday and is scheduled to conclude in early September.

M5S leader Luigi Di Maio said that his party was ready to participate in snap parliamentary elections.

"We are ready, we are not at all interested in the [ministerial] seats, and they never interested us," Di Maio said a special statement circulated on Thursday evening.

He also proposed to finally approve the law on reducing the composition of the Italian parliament by half before conducting the snap election. The final vote on this issue was scheduled for early September, immediately after the recess.

"This is a landmark reform, we will reduce 345 seats and send home 345 politicos. If we again convene the chambers of parliament, we will take the opportunity to vote on this reform earlier. We will vote for it and then pass the floor to the Italians," Di Maio said.

The leader of the largest opposition Democratic Party, Nicola Zingaretti, also said that his supporters were ready for early elections.

"We are ready for the challenge. In the upcoming elections, not only the issue of government will be decided, but also the fate of our democracy and the international position of our country," he wrote on Facebook.

On Wednesday, Salvini said that "something is broken" in the government coalition, while Di Maio wrote on Facebook that he was "tired of palace games." Sources in M5S said it opposed the "technical government," which, in the absence of a parliamentary majority, could survive until the next election.

On Thursday morning, Conte held consultations with President Sergio Mattarella. After the meeting, it was reported that Conte and Mattarella discussed neither the government crisis, nor the prime minister's departure. Conte later held separate meetings with Salvini and Di Maio. </s> A surge for populist and far-right parties in Italy's election could result in a hung parliament with a right-wing alliance likely to win the most votes but no majority after a campaign dominated by anger against immigration.

The projections based on early results on Monday also showed the far-right League party ahead of media mogul Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia (Go Italy) party within the right-wing coalition in Sunday's vote.

That raises the prospect of League leader Matteo Salvini, who has promised to shut down Roma camps, deport hundreds of thousands of migrants and tackle the "danger" of Islam, becoming Italy's next prime minister.

The eurosceptic, anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which has drawn support from Italians fed up with traditional parties and a lack of economic opportunity, was predicted to come second to the coalition.

The boost for far-right and populist parties has drawn comparisons to Britain's vote to leave the European Union and the rise of US President Donald Trump.

"The European Union is going to have a bad night," Marine Le Pen, leader of France's National Front, tweeted.

Brexit firebrand Nigel Farage congratulated the Five Star Movement, his allies in the European Parliament, "for topping the poll" as Italy's biggest single party.

Resentment at the hundreds of thousands of migrant arrivals in Italy in recent years fired up the campaign, along with frustration about social inequalities.

"These are historic results," Giancarlo Giorgetti, deputy head of the League, told reporters in Milan.

Alessandro Di Battista of the Five Star Movement, said: "Everyone is going to have to come and speak to us".

The ruling centre-left Democratic Party, which has struggled to get across its pro-European message of gradual economic recovery, was left trailing.

"This is a very clear defeat for us," Michele Martina, a minister in the outgoing government, told reporters.

Andrea Marcucci, one of the party's lawmakers, said: "The populists have won and the Democratic Party has lost".

The projections by public broadcaster Rai showed the right-wing alliance winning 35.5 percent of the vote, including 15.8 percent for the League and 14.5 percent for Forza Italia, with the Five Star Movement at 32.5 percent and the centre-left at 23.1 percent.

If no party or coalition wins an overall majority, the projected results leave Italy with few options.

One is a an "anti-system" post-election pact between the Five Star Movement and the League -- a prospect that has spooked foreign investors and European capitals.

The other would be a minority Five Star government, which could prove highly unstable. A third option would be a temporary government and new elections.

Maurizio Molinari, editor of La Stampa daily, said the victory of "anti-system forces" was a first for Europe.

In L'Espresso weekly's online edition Marco Damilano wrote: "On the night of March 4, the winners are (Five Star Movement leader Luigi) Di Maio and Salvini".

"And there are two catastrophic losers: Berlusconi, the old man on his last lap, and his young heir (Democratic Party leader) Matteo Renzi."

Il Fatto Quotidiano ran a front-page headline saying simply: "Everything will change".

Berlusconi, a flamboyant three-time former prime minister, cannot hold elected office because of a fraud conviction but has put forward European Parliament President Antonio Tajani as his prime ministerial nominee.

The billionaire, who won his first election in 1994, has returned to the limelight at the age of 81 despite a career overshadowed by sex scandals and legal woes.

He was ambushed as he cast his vote in Milan by a topless woman from the Femen activist group who had "Berlusconi, you have expired" scrawled across her torso.

The campaign was a gloomy one marred by clashes between far-right and anti-fascist activists, as well as a racist shooting spree by an extreme right sympathiser last month.

Former White House adviser Steve Bannon -- the man who helped Trump ride a populist wave to power -- characterised the election as "pure populism".

"The Italian people have gone farther, in a shorter period of time, than the British did for Brexit and the Americans did for Trump," Bannon, who was visiting Italy for the election, told the New York Times.

Bannon called a possible post-election deal between the Five Star Movement and the League "the ultimate dream".

In the event of a stalemate, President Sergio Mattarella will have the key role of choosing a prime ministerial nominee who could command a majority in parliament but negotiations could take weeks or even months.

"The verdict in Italy is always the same: the country is in constant instability. Being ungovernable has become endemic," said Claudio Tito, columnist for La Repubblica. </s> ROME: A surge for populist and far-right parties in Italy´s election could result in a hung parliament with a right-wing alliance likely to win the most votes but no majority after a campaign dominated by anger against immigration.

The projections based on early results on Monday also showed the far-right League party ahead of media mogul Silvio Berlusconi´s Forza Italia (Go Italy) party within the right-wing coalition in Sunday´s vote.

That raises the prospect of League leader Matteo Salvini, who has promised to shut down Roma camps, deport hundreds of thousands of migrants and tackle the "danger" of Islam, becoming Italy´s next prime minister.

The eurosceptic, anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which has drawn support from Italians fed up with traditional parties and a lack of economic opportunity, was predicted to come second to the coalition. The boost for far-right and populist parties has drawn comparisons to Britain´s vote to leave the European Union and the rise of US President Donald Trump.

"The European Union is going to have a bad night," Marine Le Pen, leader of France´s National Front, tweeted. Brexit firebrand Nigel Farage congratulated the Five Star Movement, his allies in the European Parliament, "for topping the poll" as Italy´s biggest single party. Resentment at the hundreds of thousands of migrant arrivals in Italy in recent years fired up the campaign, along with frustration about social inequalities. "These are historic results," Giancarlo Giorgetti, deputy head of the League, told reporters in Milan.

Alessandro Di Battista of the Five Star Movement, said: "Everyone is going to have to come and speak to us". The ruling centre-left Democratic Party, which has struggled to get across its pro-European message of gradual economic recovery, was left trailing.

"This is a very clear defeat for us," Michele Martina, a minister in the outgoing government, told reporters. Andrea Marcucci, one of the party´s lawmakers, said: "The populists have won and the Democratic Party has lost". The projections by public broadcaster Rai showed the right-wing alliance winning 35.5 percent of the vote, including 15.8 percent for the League and 14.5 percent for Forza Italia, with the Five Star Movement at 32.5 percent and the centre-left at 23.1 percent.

If no party or coalition wins an overall majority, the projected results leave Italy with few options. One is a an "anti-system" post-election pact between the Five Star Movement and the League -- a prospect that has spooked foreign investors and European capitals. The other would be a minority Five Star government, which could prove highly unstable. A third option would be a temporary government and new elections. Maurizio Molinari, editor of La Stampa daily, said the victory of "anti-system forces" was a first for Europe.
Italy faces a period of political instability after the results of the general election are almost complete. The populist Five Star Movement (M5S) is projected to be the largest party in the Italian Parliament with 32% of the vote. The party has long stated its hostility towards forming a coalition government.