belgrade, serbiaAP —
Serbia’s long-time powerful leader Aleksandar Vucic on Sunday conceded defeat in an election contested by him and his right-wing party against a diverse student-led opposition movement that has been protesting against the government for two years.
It was a seismic shift in the Balkan country, which has been led for 14 years by Vučić, who has the support of Russian President Vladimir Putin and has denounced the student movement as a foreign-led attempt to usurp him.
High turnout and heightened tensions marked a closely fought parliamentary election pitting Vučić and his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party against university students who have gained popularity across the country by accusing the government of corruption and dismantling democracy.
Serbia’s 6.4 million voters elected members of the 250-member parliament. In conceding the election, Vučić said his party expected its rival, the pro-youth Student List, to win between 135 and 140 seats, while the SNS party would win around 105 seats.
“The student list won,” Vučić told supporters at an election night event, but blamed the defeat on interference by Serbian independent media and unnamed European countries and the “American deep state.”
Vučić’s SNS party received around 1.7 million votes, while Student List said it received around 2.2 million votes.
Supporters of the student list immediately flooded the streets of Belgrade and other cities, honking their horns, shouting and shouting “Aleksandar is gone,” referring to Vučić.
The results, which Vucic announced just about an hour and a half after voting closed, came after tensions rose during the day as voting progressed.
Police in riot gear cordoned off the area around the electoral commission headquarters in central Belgrade. Special police vehicles were seen near a Belgrade park where Vučić’s supporters have been camping for more than a year, and large groups of men dressed in black had gathered in various parts of the city.
Vučić was about to become Prime Minister of Serbia after serving almost two full terms as president. He resigned from the presidency last month to lead the election campaign.
Support for the populists had declined since 2024, when a concrete canopy collapsed at a train station in Novi Sad, killing 16 people. This sparked a wave of youth protests who blamed corruption, nepotism and rampant misconduct by government officials during the station’s renovations for the collapse.
Despite the protests, Vučić maintained considerable support among many Serbian voters. His admirers saw him as a capable leader capable of guiding the country through global uncertainty, but that image had been carefully crafted by mainstream media.
The increasingly authoritarian Mr. Vučić has consistently defeated Serbia’s fractured opposition, but the leaderless youth movement has proven to be a more formidable opponent than any other to undermine his firm grip on power in Serbia in the 14 years since his party took power.
The newly formed Student List Movement was formed by university students, but not a single one actually appeared on the electoral list. Instead, its candidates are lesser-known professionals, athletes, farmers, and artists.
This approach was aimed at countering Vucic’s one-man rule and restoring a sense of community and togetherness. The students’ messages during the campaign focused on bipartisan efforts to rebuild Serbia’s economy and restore democracy.
Students have harnessed youthful energy to attract voters disillusioned with local politicians. Maligned by pro-government media, they cycled and walked across the country to reach voters in rural areas, Vučić’s traditional stronghold.
The students’ victory mirrors the defeat of Vučić’s allies in recent elections in Hungary, where youth participation helped oust 16-year dictator Viktor Orbán and install a new pro-European government. The voice could resonate beyond Serbia, as countries across Europe face angry protests by young people and students.
Monitors predict that total turnout in the election could reach around 70%, a figure not seen in Serbia since 2000. During the day, long lines formed at polling stations in Serbia and cities around the world. Some members of the Serbian diaspora were forced to vote in the middle of the night as authorities tied voting times to Serbian local time.
Recent elections in Serbia were marred by fraud, and the EU was closely monitoring the conduct of Sunday voting in candidate countries for EU membership.
Independent election observers on Sunday reported dozens of cases of fraud, including the taking of photographs of ballots suggesting voter pressure or vote buying.
International and local election observers had expressed concerns about the safety and fairness of the election campaign, which was marked by detentions, near-total government control of the media, surveillance of activists and reports of cyber attacks.
Local elections held in 10 Serbian municipalities earlier this year resulted in violent attacks on journalists and activists. The last parliamentary vote in 2023 was followed by protests by opposition parties alleging fraud.
