When no party gets enough seats in the House of Commons to form a majority Government the result is described as a hung parliament.

Parties must get more than 326 MPs in order to have a majority.

If nobody does, someone has to try and form a stable Government and this can ultimately mean the party which technically comes second in the election can form a ruling body instead.

What happens next?

The incumbent Government - the last one before the election - stays in Number 10 until a new Government can be formed.

Theresa May will not move out and talks will begin to see if the Conservatives can find enough support from other parties to rule.

So does Theresa May get the first shot at forming a coalition?

Yes. Although it doesn't mean she will definitely be the next Prime Minister. If the Conservatives get close to the magic 326 number on their own they may be able to borrow support from the DUP, a party which tends to vote with them anyway.

Talks will begin to try and see who can make a deal work. One of the two parties with a realistic chance - the Conservatives or Labour - could also choose to govern as a minority and find support from other MPs as and when they need to get a vote through parliament.

This is much harder than governing with a majority, even a small one.

What happens if she fails?

If Theresa May can't get the numbers it will be Labour's chance to try and do the same unless the Tories want to try their luck with a minority.

She will be expected to resign.

Labour could borrow support from other parties, although the Lib Dems have ruled this out and Jeremy Corbyn vowed not to work with the Scottish Nationals.

Do the voters get a say?

No. Once the general election has taken place and no overall decision has been made it's up to the parties to make the best of it as the Conservatives and the Lib Dems did in 2010.

How long does it take?

There is no time limit to agree a new Government. In 2010 it took five days, although many people thought this was too quick and important details were missed, leading to problems further down the line.

Either way neither of the parties will want to take too long about it because the Brexit negotiations begin 11 days after polling day.

And Parliament will meet again on the 13 June, so someone has to have come up with a solution by then. Mrs May has the option of waiting until this date to see if she has the confidence of the Commons too.

A Queen's Speech must be presented by 19 June, either by Mrs May or Mr Corbyn. Parliament must vote the speech through so this is the key test for a new Government.

Does the Queen have a say?

No, the Queen doesn't get involved in politics at all. But there are suggestions she may not deliver the speech if she is not sure it will be voted through Parliament.

Could there be another election?

Possibly. If the Conservatives form a minority Government the Prime Minister could seek another election later in the year. This is what Ted Heath did in 1974 when he won a majority the second time around, but it is a risk.

If MPs table a no-confidence motion in the sitting Government a new election could be triggered as long as the opposition also couldn't form a Government.

This is where it all gets a bit complicated though. If there is a no-confidence motion in Theresa May she could hand the leadership of her party to a colleague, who could seek to form a Government.

If they can't, power could be handed to Labour but this would be uncharted territory because it means the governing party would change without an election. This would be unprecedented.

Analysis from Kate McCann

Election Bulletin