So let the horse-trading begin!
The labor party and the liberals now have to negotiate with the three sitting independents who have been re-elected - Tony Windsor, Bob Katter and Rob Oakeshott - as well as the Greens' Adam Bandt, who has won the seat of Melbourne.
A fourth independent, Andrew Wilkie, may come into the mix, as he is locked in a tight battle with Labor for the seat of Denison in Tasmania.
Julia Gillard remains the caretaker prime minister and her Government remains in the caretaker role it has played since the election was called.
This is the first hung Parliament at a Commonwealth level in Australia since 1940, and it could drag on for as long as needed.
