GREECE’S divided parliament failed to elect a new president for the country in a third and final round of voting today.

The only candidate in the one-horse race — former European commissioner Stavros Dimas — fell short of the 180-vote supermajority needed to become president.

He garnered just 168 votes. In two previous ballots, the 73-year-old conservative former minister won 160 and 168 votes respectively.

Under Greek law, a general election must now be called, leaving Greece’s European Union partners uncertain whether they will be facing a compliant debtor in the new year.

The radical left Syriza party, which wants to renegotiate bailout terms with the EU and International Monetary Fund (IMF) and roll back austerity policies, has led the way in opinion polls for months.

A wary IMF promptly said that stalled bailout review talks will now only take place after the new government is in place, following national elections on January 25.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras had appealed to MPs at the weekend to back Mr Dimas but refused to offer more concessions and said he was confident of winning any election.

But speculators were not so certain and, ahead of the midday vote, shares on the Athens Stock Exchange plunged by 8 per cent.

Syriza opposes the terms of the bailout which avoided a Greek default, though it remains committed to EU membership.

The EU and IMF fear that Syriza would undo many of the right-wing economic reforms their deal has imposed on Greece.

Those reforms have taken a heavy toll as unemployment has soared above 27 per cent and many Greeks have suffered wage and benefit cuts.

Syriza, which declined to vote in the presidential election in order to force an election, has claimed it will raise salaries and pensions, halt layoffs and freeze the privatisation of state assets demanded by creditors.

Recent opinion polls have showed the ruling coalition trailing Syriza.