Albania's parliament failed to elect a new president on Wednesday as the two major parties could not nominate a joint candidate in the first round.

Under the Constitution, the 140-seat parliament has a maximum five sessions to elect a successor to President Bamir Topi, whose five-year term expires on July 24.

While the first three rounds of voting require a three-fifths majority to elect the president, it only needs a simple majority of 71 votes in the fourth and fifth round to avoid a crisis.

The ruling Democratic Party of Prime Minister Sali Berisha and its allies, with a thin majority of 74 in the 140-seat parliament, backed Xhezair Zaganjori, a former ambassador and a high court judge, but this nomination was rejected by the opposition Socialists.

"All political forces should show the spirit of acceptance and I believe the solution will come in the second and third rounds," parliament speaker Jozefina Topalli told lawmakers at the end of the session.

Calling the session closed, Topalli began a meeting of the parliament's heads of party groups to decide when to hold the second round of voting.