Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, called the vote fraudulent and demanded the result be overturned, after finding out about the victory of his center-left rival, Romano Prodi. The latter won by a narrow margin in this week's parliamentary election and is heading for a potentially divided coalition.

"The rigging was all in one direction, it was absolutely not evenly spread. We have to check the records of 60,000 polling stations, one by one. The result must change because there was too much fraud in several parts of Italy," Berlusconi told reporters.

He counts on the votes coming from abroad, which proved crucial in the Senate race, saying "there are many irregularities and therefore it's possible that this is not a vote we can say is valid."

The prime minister, Italy's richest man, refused to recognize his defeat and spoke about many irregularities in the voting process on Sunday and Monday. Prodi dismissed Berlusconi's accusations, advising him to step aside after being five years in command.

"Berlusconi has been trying to spread concern and in spite of his defeat he continues to cast doubt on the legality of our victory. I can assure you there is no doubt about our victory," he asserted.

Prodi began forming his Cabinet, discussing with coalition parties earlier this Wednesday. However, he would probably have to wait until a new president takes office, before he would be able to form a government. The seven year term President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi won will end on May 18, leaving a new government up to his successor.