Long-serving Serbian leader Aleksandar Vučić has conceded defeat to a student-led protest movement in the country’s snap parliamentary elections. Speaking late on Sunday at the headquarters of his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in Belgrade, Vučić acknowledged that early results made it clear his party had lost the vote, which had been framed as a referendum on Serbia’s future.
The election followed two years of widespread demonstrations sparked by the collapse of a train station canopy in Novi Sad, an event that caused 16 deaths and raised public outrage over alleged government corruption and neglect. Vučić, who spent 12 years in top leadership roles including two terms as president, was attempting to secure a return to the prime minister position through his party’s parliamentary campaign.
Following Vučić’s concession, crowds of supporters for the Student List gathered in public spaces to celebrate. In Belgrade’s Slavija square and in Novi Sad, people took to the streets, playing music, setting off fireworks, and chanting. Representatives of the student movement expressed disbelief and joy, describing the election outcome as a step toward freeing the country from tyranny and corruption.
High Turnout and Anti-Corruption Platform
Data from Serbia’s election commission pointed to a record turnout, reaching 64.9% by 18:00 local time. Long queues were reported at polling locations nationwide and among Serbian communities living abroad, including voting centers in Ljubljana, Munich, Paris, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Security forces had sealed off streets surrounding the Republic Electoral Commission in the capital earlier in the day amid high public tension.
The Student List anti-corruption movement launched a platform featuring candidates from non-political backgrounds, including academics, medical professionals, actors, and sports figures. Their platform pledged to remove officials responsible for harsh crackdowns on demonstrators, prevent political appointees from managing public companies, and eliminate political control over the state broadcaster.
While Vučić and his party consistently denied corruption allegations, his campaign focused on economic promises, including raising public sector salaries and pensions alongside boosting investments in healthcare. Externally, Vučić maintained Serbia’s European Union candidacy while keeping ties open with Russia by declining to impose sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine.
Source: BBC News
