Student List wins Serbia’s election with 53% of vote — Deutsche Welle
In Serbia, the Student List won the parliamentary election on October 25, receiving 53% of the vote. President Aleksandar Vučić’s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) received 39%. Vučić acknowledged defeat, but the new parliament has not yet been convened, and the SNS retains control over some state levers, Deutsche Welle reports.
Personnel changes and investigations
After the election, citizens in many cities peacefully removed portraits of Vučić from municipal buildings. The prosecutor’s office for organized crime launched investigations, including into possible election fraud. A separate commission is reviewing the work of the Belgrade Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office, which critics accused of carrying out Vučić’s political directives and persecuting his opponents.
The director general of the state broadcaster RTS resigned, and a number of senior editors were also dismissed. Vučić called these actions “revolutionary terror” and said his supporters could organize if, in his words, violence against people with different views continues.
Expectations of change and repeat voting
The Student List, which emerged amid the student protest movement, brought together professors, activists and artists. The collapse of a concrete canopy at the recently renovated railway station in Novi Sad two years ago sparked the protests. Sixteen people were killed then. The accident is linked to poor-quality work and corruption during the signing and implementation of the reconstruction contract.
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Representatives of the Student List are demanding the resignations of police and judicial leaders and have called on whistleblowers to report possible attempts to destroy documents. Zlatko Minić of Transparency Serbia warned that officials from the previous government may still enter into contracts and create financial obligations for the institutions they run.
Voting will be repeated on November 1 at approximately 50 polling stations because of violations during the first vote. Once these votes are counted, parliament can be convened. The formation of the government is expected quickly, but the composition of the future cabinet has not yet been announced.
Foreign policy position
The Student List unites the left and the right, EU supporters and pro-Russian forces. Its representatives say they intend to advance Serbia’s EU accession negotiations through reforms; at the same time, the list opposes sanctions against Russia and recognition of Kosovo. Future lawmaker and psychology professor Oliver Tošković said that a sharp change in foreign policy course could destabilize the country.
