Italy's parties duck fourth presidential vote, seek way out of impasse

Ballot papers are counted after the third day of voting to elect the country's new president, in Rome, Italy, January 26, 2022. Alberto Pizzoli/Pool via REUTERS

ROME (Reuters) -A fourth round of voting to elect a new Italian president headed for failure on Thursday after the main political blocs decided not to present any candidates as they struggled to agree on a mutually acceptable figure for the powerful role.

However, both sides indicated they wanted to speed up consultations and former prime minister Matteo Renzi predicted that a deal would be reached by Friday.