The anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) was the biggest winner, taking XXX share of the vote to become the single largest party.
Its popularity means that although the party cannot govern on its own, it is unlikely that it will be left out of a coalition of other parties.
Lawmaker Alessandro Di Battista, one of M5S’s most popular politicians, said: “There can’t be a government without 5-Star, everyone has to come and talk to us.”
The 31-year-old party leader Luigi Di Maio could now form an alliance with the far-right league – made up of four conservative parties – or a centre-left coalition, although the one is not about end so likely.
The centre-right bloc emerged today as the coalition with the highest number of votes overall – a XXX percent share – while Matteo Salvini’s Lega Nord party became their main partner XXX votes.
Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia fell behind in the coalition in second place with a XXX share.
Forza Italia tweeted earlier: “This evening President Berlusconi met with Matteo Salvini. Congratulating him, he has confirmed that thanks to this result, the center-right powers will strengthen the coalition that needs to get a mandate to govern Italy to restart the country. “
It could take weeks to form a government in Italy while parties negotiate possible coalitions.
READ MORE: Italian election 2018 update: What would Italy do if results show a hung parliament?
Who are the biggest winners and losers in the Italian election?
Former Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi resigned this afternoon as leader of the centre-left Democratic Party after his poor performance, taking only XXX percent of the votes.
The left has performed poorly in general with issues related to immigration and high unemployment drawing voters away from right-wing splinter parties.
In contrast, the campaign party M5S won many of their votes in the islands and mostly in the south.
Lega’s strong performance means Matteo Salvini will have the upper hand in any government talks in the coming weeks.
What issues won the 2018 Italian election?
Immigration and the decline of the Italian economy played a large role in the minds of voters during the 2018 Italian election.
Many Italians were angered by the influx of 600,000 migrants from North Africa since 2014, something even French President Macron admits at a press conference this afternoon.
He told reporters: “I note that in the world we live in, you can fight for good ideas, but you can’t do that without take into account violent context.
“And there is no doubt that Italy has suffered for months and months under migration pressure. This very strong migration pressure is a context that we should keep in mind.”
Italy’s high unemployment – currently 11 percent – and economic recession were also key election issues.
M5S’s flagship campaign proposal was a minimum monthly income of up to 780 euros ($963) for the poor, explaining the large numbers of votes across the South.
What about the EU and the euro?
The political uncertainty does not appear to have worried investors with traders expected to turn their focus to four key central bank meetings this week, said Nick Bennenbroek, head of currency strategy at Wells Fargo Securities in New York.
