Serbia votes in snap election as student movement challenges Vucic
Serbia voted on Sunday in a snap parliamentary election pitting long-time leader Aleksandar Vucic against a student protest movement, with polling stations open from 7am to 8pm local time and first indications expected about two hours after polls close.
Serbia voted on Sunday in a snap parliamentary election that pits long-time leader Aleksandar Vucic against a student protest movement seeking to end his more than decade-long grip on power.
Polling stations opened at 7am local time and close at 8pm, with the first indications of the result expected about two hours later, Reuters reported.
Vucic called the snap election in September after almost two years of student-led demonstrations. The protests began after 16 people died when a railway station canopy collapsed in Novi Sad in 2024, and have since drawn widespread support.
The students’ list of 250 candidates — including university professors, actors and farmers — is led by cardiologist Ilija Srdanovic. Its domestic platform focuses on rooting out corruption and improving education, while it has said less about Serbia’s international position.
Opinion polls predict a tight race. An Ipsos survey published on Thursday put Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party on 47 per cent, against 40 per cent for the students, although other polls have put the students ahead.
Vucic, who held power first as prime minister and then as president, resigned as president to run again for prime minister. He has pledged higher pensions and public-sector salaries, investment in state healthcare and subsidies for young couples.
“The Serbian election is shaping up to be a watershed moment for the country as the Student List mounts the biggest challenge against Vucic yet,” Mario Bikarski, senior Europe analyst at risk consultancy Verisk Maplecroft, said.
Sources:
More on this topic: all World stories
