From: Asifa Kassam and Ana Milosavlevq in Belgrade / The Guardian
Translation: Television. com
Serbia’s longtime leader, Aleksandar Vuciq, has conceded defeat, paving the way for a profound political change after historic elections, in which the increasingly authoritarian leader faced a student-led movement that had spent two years protesting his government.
Vuciqi referred to preliminary results showing voters had overwhelmingly supported the students, potentially giving them the majority in the country’s 250-seat parliament.
And we don’t have the final results, Vucinqi told supporters at his party headquarters in Belgrade. On the basis of a champion… it is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won, they will have between 135 and 140 seats, while we will have 10550.
A representative champion prepared by poll institutes CeSID-IPS indicated the list of student List candidates would have 138 MPs, while the Serbian Progressive Party ( The right SNS of Vucinqi had secured 104 seats. According to polling institutes, the remaining seats were likely to be divided among the parties of national ethnic minorities.
When news spread that the 12 years of the ruling Vuciki had come to an end, celebrations broke out on the streets of Belgrade and other cities.
In the capital city, Ivana, 43, was excited. For me it feels like New Year’s Eve, like three nights of New Year’s Eve at once, really, she said. We can finally breathe again. She added that she hoped the main members of the fallen regime would soon be brought to account — a key promise of the Student List campaign.
Others held hands on the police on the street, shook their palms with them, and hugged them, and a trumpet choir was heard from cars passing through.
At Student List headquarters, supporters cheered on Fitore, victory! Dear Serbia, the voice of the people is being heard tonight, said Radomir Saicicic, professor at the University of Belgrade, speaking on behalf of students at their headquarters. Tonight we celebrate victory, tomorrow we build the future,
The scene of joy came several hours after a record number of voters came out to vote Sunday. Throughout the country, long lines lay outside polling stations, while some reported that the wait lasted up to two hours. By 7:00, according to local time, polling institutes and surveyors CeSID and Ipsos estimated the turnout at 67.6 per cent, the highest since Yugoslavia’s break-up in 1992.
High turnout, along with about 150 thousand people flocking to the latest assembly of students last week’s elections in Belgrade, prompted speculations that students could have amassed enough support to open a new political era in the Balkan country.
On the eve of the vote, opinion polls had changed dramatically from each other, while analysts noted the high degree of uncertainty, while candidates representing the student movement from the base faced Vuciqi’s SNS.
The results were followed worldwide as part of the 10 crucial election days in various parts of the globe, during which authoritarian right is facing pro-democratic forces. The victory of student-led movement in Serbia is also likely to have echoed across Europe, promoting youth protests and students who have shaken cities across the continent.
As people were waiting for election results to emerge, speculation had started to circulate on the internet if Vuciqi tried to stay in power regardless of the outcome. However, his quick acceptance of his defeat reminded his ally, Victor Orbán, in neighboring Hungary six months ago, of fuelling hopes for a democratic revival in Central Europe.
Multitasking elections in this EU candidate country began in November 2024, when a concrete shelter collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station, killing 16 people. Tragedy triggered protests among students, which quickly turned into a broad anti-government movement, as evidence showed that for the collapse of the refuge of guilt was to build in violation, fraud and corruption.
As Vuciqi é more and more authoritarian leader who has dominated Serbian politics for more than a decade faced mounting pressure from students last month, he resigned from the president’s post to try luck with early elections.
Students used the opportunity to turn the movement into political power. They announced a list of 250 candidates for the 250-seat parliament from academics to athletes and farmers while calling on voters to support their efforts to rebuild Serbia’s economy and restore its democracy.
The campaign pitted them in the face of Vuciki’s political monolily party SNS, leaving them in a difficult battle against a ruling party that had taken over almost all television and radio channels and used ministries and other state institutions as political means.
Vuchchiqi had repeatedly tried to undermine the students by accusing them of being tools of foreign powers, an accusation that students have dismissed. While promising to increase pensions and salaries in the public sector, Vuciqi tried to present himself as a leader capable of maintaining the difficult diplomatic balance between the country’s ties with the West and Russia and China to guide Serbia through global uncertainty.
Undaunted, the students took to the streets, organized gatherings, went to rural areas that had long been Vuciki’s bets and knocked doors at the door, while trying to present themselves as candidates against the estability and unite voters around their slogan: Serbia or the Mafia?
The message was repeated on Sunday, when Dejan Bodiroga, candidate of the Student List, cast his vote in Belgrade.
Today, above all, Serbia is fighting for freedom and the return of a state that has been kidnapped, Bodiroga told reporters. Serbia is voting today to decide which direction it will take towards the future or the past.
On the eve of Sunday’s vote, both international and local election observers voiced concerns about bans and reports of cyber surveillance and attacks on activists.
On Sunday, independent monitoring groups warned of recorded cases of polling photos suggesting pressure on voters, voting attempts, and carousel voting.
Among them was Rasa Nedeljkov from the election monitoring organisation CRTA, who said a large number of irregularities continued to be recorded, while violent incidents outside polling stations are also becoming more frequent. /Telegraph
