Italy's new prime minister-designate Carlo Cottarelli said Monday he would hold an election by the start of 2019 at the latest after being given the mandate to form a government by President Sergio Mattarella.

"I will come to parliament with a program that, if I win the vote of confidence, will include a vote on the 2019 budget. Then parliament will be dissolved, with elections at the start of 2019," Cottarelli told reporters after meeting Mattarella.

But he added that if, as is likely, his government is not approved by parliament, new elections will be held "after August."

Cottarelli, tapped to head a neutral government in Italy after two populists failed in their bid, is a former official at the International Monetary Fund who is a firm believer in the euro and in the necessity of Italy cutting its stubbornly high-debt load.

Carlo Cottarelli, an economist, has previous government experience under the short-lived center-left government of Enrico Letta, chosen to identify areas where government spending could be trimmed. He found 32 billion euros ($37 billion) in cuts, but left embittered when the government soon changed hands at the obstacles he found within the bureaucracy resisting cuts.

On Monday, after receiving the mandate to try to form a government, Cottarelli said his primary job was to guide Italy to a new election. In a bid to settle markets, he stressed that Italy's economy was growing, its public debt was "under control" and that he assured his government would prioritize "prudent" management of it.

However, this may be difficult since 5-Star Movement (M5S) and the League, who have a majority in parliament, have vowed to vote against him.

MS5 and the League dropped their bid to form a governing alliance later Sunday, increasing the odds of fresh elections as Italy struggles to overcome the political stalemate produced by March 4 elections.

Both M5S and the League have voiced their criticism of what they see as attempts to form a "technocratic government."

Mattarella is reported to have vetoed the League's nominee for the post of finance minister: Paolo Savona, known for his criticism of the eurozone and of Germany.