Serbian President Vucic Concedes Defeat to Student Movement in Historic Election

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat to a student-led protest movement in a historic snap election on Sunday, ending his decade-long hold on power and ushering in a new political chapter for the Balkan nation.

Streets across Belgrade erupted in celebration following Vucic’s announcement, with car horns blaring and students chanting “victory” and “he’s done.”

The snap election followed nearly two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and creeping authoritarianism. The protests were sparked by the deaths of 16 people in the 2024 collapse of a train station canopy in Novi Sad.

“Dear Serbia, tonight the voice of the people is being heard,” said Radomir Sajcic, a professor at Belgrade University speaking on behalf of the students at their headquarters. “Tonight we celebrate victory, tomorrow we build the future.”

Voter turnout reached nearly 70%, the highest since the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992. Long lines snaked from polling stations in cities and towns nationwide, signaling a widespread desire for change.

“It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won, they will have between 135 and 140 seats and we will have 105, no one else has entered parliament,” Vucic said, basing his projection on preliminary results.

A representative sample by CESID-IPSOS pollsters projected the student candidate list will secure 138 deputies, while Vucic’s SNS party garnered 104 seats in the 250-seat parliament. Remaining seats will be distributed among ethnic minority parties.

“Unbelievable happiness and joy and we have finally got rid of this mafia. I am so happy I cannot speak,” said a woman named Tanja, celebrating on the streets of Belgrade.

Tense Atmosphere

Tensions mounted as voting progressed throughout the day. Police in anti-riot gear cordoned off an area in central Belgrade around the election commission headquarters. Local media reported several violent incidents across the country, and special police vehicles were deployed near a Belgrade park where Vucic loyalists had been camping for over a year.

During a news conference less than two hours before polls closed, a student representative urged citizens to “stay calm and composed.”

While the increasingly authoritarian Vucic had routinely outmaneuvered Serbia’s fractured opposition in the past, the leaderless youth movement proved a formidable adversary that rattled his firm grip on power like no other force in the 14 years since his party took office.

The student victory echoes the recent electoral defeat of a Vucic ally in Hungary, where youth participation helped oust autocratic leader Viktor Orbán after 16 years and install a new pro-European government. The result will likely resonate beyond Serbia as countries across Europe grapple with youth and student protests.

Voters queued at polling places nationwide from the early hours on Sunday as local election monitors noted relatively high participation. Long lines also formed at polling stations around the world, some in the middle of the night after authorities tied voting hours to local Serbian time.

In the capital, Belgrade, Vucic stood in line alongside his wife for nearly two hours before casting his ballot. He told reporters he hoped for a peaceful election day and said that he and his party would respect the result.

“The will of the people is the will of God: vox populi, vox dei,” Vucic said. “If we lose, we will recognise the electoral will. If we win, no one will take it away from us.”

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and AP)

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