CNN: Italian President Giorgio Napolitano has asked center-left politician Enrico Letta to form a new government, the president's spokesman said Wednesday, raising hopes of an end to the country's political impasse.

Speaking after their meeting, Letta told reporters he would consult with parties Thursday and then would return to the presidential palace to "fully accept" the mandate.

The step comes four days after Napolitano, 87, was re-elected by Italy's Parliament on Saturday to an unprecedented second term. Italy has been locked in a political stalemate since February's general election left a three-way split between the right, the left and a wild-card party.

A delegation led by Letta, a 46-year-old former deputy prime minister who belongs to the center-left Democratic Party, met with Napolitano on Tuesday.