Greek PM proposes early election be held on Jan.25

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said he would propose holding an early national election on Jan. 25 after parliament rejected his nominee for president. Samaras said he was confident of winning the election, saying he would not allow anyone to put the country's place in Europe in question or usher in a new period of crisis and budget deficits in Greece. "All those who have voted against are responsible for an event that Greek people did not want," he said in a televised address. "It's time for Greek people to do what parliament has not done, to end uncertainty and restore stability." He said he would go to President Karolos Papoulias on Tuesday to propose the dissolution of parliament and the election date. Earlier, opposition leader Alexis Tsipras hailed the result of the presidential vote, saying it spelled the end of bailout programs tied to austerity. "Today is a historic day for Greek democracy. Lawmakers proved that democracy cannot be blackmailed," he told reporters after the vote. "With the will of our people, in a few days bailouts tied to austerity will also be a thing of the past. The future has already begun." (Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou and George Georgiopoulos, Writing by Deepa Babington)