Serbia election: Vučić concedes as student-led movement wins a parliamentary majority

Serbia’s longtime leader Aleksandar Vučić has conceded defeat in Sunday’s snap parliamentary election, handing victory to a student-led movement that grew out of two years of protests. Celebrations broke out in Belgrade, Novi Sad and other cities late Sunday as preliminary results showed the Student List on track to govern on its own.

“It is clear we have lost these elections,” Vučić said at his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) headquarters in Belgrade, according to the BBC.

The preliminary results

Final results have not been announced, and the numbers have shifted slightly as more polling stations report:

• Al Jazeera, citing the Republic Election Commission (RIK) on Monday, reported the Student List at 52.54% and Vučić’s United Serbia list at 39.29%, with 8,077 of 8,392 polling stations processed.
• The BBC reported that with 97% of polling stations counted, the commission put the students at 52.6% (2.24 million votes) and the SNS at 39.2% (1.67 million).
• Turnout was 68.78%, according to RIK data cited by Al Jazeera, a record high in more than 30 years. The Guardian reported that pollsters had put turnout at 67.6% by 7 p.m. local time, the highest since 1992.

Seat projections vary a little. Al Jazeera reported the Student List is projected to win 140 of the 250 seats, well above the 126 needed for a majority, with United Serbia at 103. Vučić himself said the students would have between 135 and 140 seats and his side 105, the Guardian reported, while a pollster sample cited by the Guardian put the split at 138 to 104. Minority parties are expected to take the remaining seats.

How a protest movement got here

The movement traces back to November 2024, when a concrete canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station, killing 16 people. Protests led by students grew into a broad anti-government campaign as evidence suggested shoddy construction, fraud and corruption were to blame, the Guardian reported. Vučić and the SNS have repeatedly denied corruption, according to the BBC.

Vučić, who has dominated Serbian politics since 2014, first as prime minister and then as president, resigned the presidency in September and called the snap vote. The BBC reported he was leading his party with the aim of returning as prime minister.

The Student List ran 250 candidates from across Serbian society, including academics, doctors, actors and athletes. Among them was former basketball star Dejan Bodiroga, who said as he voted that Serbia was “fighting for freedom,” per the Guardian. The movement campaigned on fighting corruption and organized crime, freeing the public broadcaster from political control and restoring the independence of institutions.

Concerns on election day

The vote was not without problems. The Guardian reported that monitors raised concerns before the election about detentions, surveillance and cyberattacks on activists. On election day, independent monitoring groups reported cases of ballot photographing suggesting voter pressure, attempted vote-buying and so-called carousel voting. Raša Nedeljkov of the monitoring group CRTA said “a large number of irregularities” were being recorded.

Who could be Serbia’s next prime minister?

The Student List did not name a prime ministerial candidate during the campaign, preferring to stress its collective character, Al Jazeera reported. Its lead candidate, Ilija Srdanović, a cardiologist and professor at the University of Novi Sad’s Faculty of Medicine, is now seen as the most likely pick. It is still unclear who will run key ministries such as interior, finance and justice.

“This will be a free state,” Srdanović told BBC Serbian.

What happens next

According to Al Jazeera:

1. Final results must be announced.
2. The new National Assembly must be constituted within 30 days of that.
3. A government must be formed within 90 days after that, though the Student List’s outright majority means no lengthy coalition talks.

A presidential election is also coming. Parliament speaker Ana Brnabić is serving as acting president, and because Vučić resigned on Sept. 27, the vote must be held by Dec. 27. The presidency is largely ceremonial.

Why it matters beyond Serbia

Serbia is a candidate to join the European Union, and reaction came quickly. European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said “a new chapter can begin for Serbia,” adding that “the door to the EU is open,” the BBC reported. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised Vučić’s role in relations with Russia and said he hoped the new government would see cooperation with Moscow as in Serbia’s interest. Hungary’s prime minister, Péter Magyar, whose party ended Viktor Orbán’s rule in April, welcomed the result.

Serbian voters abroad also turned out, with lines reported in cities including Los Angeles and Chicago, according to the BBC.

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