Greece to hold snap elections

Athens: Snap elections will be held in Greece after provisional results in the European Parliament and local elections showed the ruling Syriza party facing major defeat.

The announcement was made by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

In a statement broadcast live on state-owned ERT, Tsipras said, "We courageously asked the Greek people for their confidence in our plan for relief measures and the restructuring of society and the country. Although the electoral result solidified Syriza position as a leading actor in politics, it does not meet our expectations." he said.

He stated he would soon visit the country's president to request the early dissolution of parliament after the second round of local and regional elections on June 2.
Shortly before Tsipras's televised statement the head of the conservative New Democracy party Kyriakos Mitsotakis called for him to resign.

"The change I had been talking (about) throughout the pre-election campaign has already started. Greece needs a new government. The prime minister must assume his responsibilities. He should resign and the country must be led to national elections as soon as possible," he said.

Provisional results showed Syriza winning just 24 percent of votes in the European Parliamentary elections, with the conservative New Democracy (ND) party receiving 33.8 percent. In local elections, results showed ND leading in the bulk of the country's 13 regions and 325 municipalities.