Students Win Serbia Election, Vucic Concedes Defeat
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has conceded defeat after candidates backed by a student-led movement took the lead in the country’s snap parliamentary election.
Preliminary estimates from Sunday’s (October 25) election suggest that the student-backed “Student List” could win 135 to 140 of the 250 parliamentary seats. Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) is projected to secure around 105 seats.
“It is clear that we have lost this election. The Student List has won,” Vucic said in a televised address. He acknowledged, however, that the final results had not yet been announced.
Vucic has been a dominant figure in Serbian politics since 2014, serving as prime minister and president. A student-led protest movement, fuelled by allegations of corruption and increasingly authoritarian rule, has posed a major challenge to his government.
The protests intensified after a railway station canopy collapsed in Novi Sad in November 2024, killing 16 people. The disaster sparked widespread anger over alleged irregularities in infrastructure projects and a lack of accountability.
Under pressure from the protests, Vucic announced a snap election in September. Student-backed candidates mounted a strong challenge to the ruling party, potentially marking a major shift in Serbian politics. However, it remains unclear who will become prime minister and how the new government will be formed.
Celebrations erupted in the capital, Belgrade, after Vucic conceded defeat. Thousands of people took to the streets, honking car horns, dancing and chanting “Victory” and “The game is over”.
Addressing a gathering at the students’ headquarters, Radomir Sajic, a professor at the University of Belgrade, said, “Tonight, the voice of the people is being heard. Tonight, we celebrate victory; tomorrow, we will build the future.”
Voter turnout reportedly reached around 70 per cent, according to polling agencies and election commission data. The report described it as the highest turnout in Serbia since the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992. Vucic also reportedly waited nearly two hours to cast his vote in Belgrade.
Vucic’s supporters credit his government with modernising the economy and building highways, railways, schools and hospitals. The student movement, meanwhile, has called for investigations into corruption allegations, greater accountability and stronger democratic institutions. Vucic has denied allegations of corruption and repression of opposition figures.
The student-backed candidates now face the challenge of forming a government and fulfilling their promises. The new leadership will also have to balance domestic reforms with Serbia’s relations with the European Union, Russia and China.
Source: Reuters
