Greek vote impasse raises cash concerns

Greek prime minister Antonis Samaras has announced plans for an early general election next month after parliament rejected his candidate for president, throwing the country’s international bailout into doubt.

After three rounds of voting, the only candidate in the race, former European Commissioner Stavros Dimas, fell short of the 180 votes needed to become president, triggering a procedure leading to the dissolution of parliament.

Samaras immediately said he would meet outgoing president Karolos Papoulias today to propose holding parliamentary elections on January 25 and called on Greek voters to ensure stability was preserved.