King Felipe VI has put in motion a process to dissolve parliament and to have another general election in Spain.
The move comes after four months of jockeying about with no resolution. Coalition talks have failed repeatedly to find sufficient agreement for a ruling majority.
"His Majesty the King... has established that there is no candidate with the necessary support," a palace statement read.
The official timeframe indicates that the election will take place on 26 June.
The December elections saw a decline in votes for the two traditional parties, the Popular Party and the Socialists, while two new parties gained votes. Spain has never had a coalition government since its transition to democracy following the 1975 death of the dictator Franco.
Four months of negotiations and talks failed to find agreement on a ruling coalition. The king launched the third and last round on Monday and Tuesday, but it too was fruitless.
It remains to be seen if the fresh round of elections will produce a markedly different result. Opinion polls tend to suggest that the outcome will be similar to that in December.
If so, the disagreements among parties will have to be overcome somehow if Spain is to emerge from its current political limbo. The fourth-largest economy in the eurozone has begun to show signs of life and will need governance if it is to revive well.
