Serbia's Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat to a student-led protest movement in a historic election on Sunday that ends his long grip on power and heralds a new political era in the Balkan country. Vucic, a populist and nationalist, has dominated Serbian politics as prime minister or president since 2014. But he called snap elections in September after almost two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and creeping authoritarianism triggered by the deaths of 16 people when a train station canopy collapsed in the city of Novi Sad in 2024.
"It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won," Vucic said in a televised speech. Within moments of his announcement, the streets of Belgrade erupted in celebration before the crowd swelled into the tens of thousands, with cars honking, people dancing and students shouting "victory" and "he's done". The students' win marks a profound political shift in the country of some 6 million people and is reminiscent of the defeat of Hungary's Viktor Orban in April.
The turnout was close to 70%, the highest since the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992. Vucic said the students would have between 135 and 140 seats in the 250-seat parliament and that his SNS party will have 105, based on preliminary results. "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.
Much remains unclear about how the student-backed candidates will fare, as their list of 250 largely unknown personalities includes university professors, actors and farmers, led by cardiologist Ilija Srdanovic. Their domestic agenda aims to root out graft and improve schooling, while balancing relations with China, Russia and the European Union.
Source: Hacker News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing