Vučić admits defeat as student movement wins snap vote

Vučić admits defeat as student movement wins snap vote

What Happened

Aleksandar Vučić, Serbia's long‑time leader, said on Sunday that his Serbian Progressive Party has lost the snap parliamentary election. He made the statement at the party headquarters in Belgrade, noting that final results were still pending but the outcome was clear.

Reaction

The announcement came after preliminary data from the election commission showed a record‑high voter turnout. Commentators had warned that such turnout would benefit the student‑led protest movement that had organised the campaign. Streets in Belgrade filled with celebrations; cars honked and students chanted “victory.”

Context

Vučić called the snap election following two years of protests sparked by the 2024 collapse of a train‑station canopy in Novi Sad, an accident that killed 16 people and was seen as a sign of corruption and neglect. The high turnout and the student movement’s win suggest a shift in public sentiment away from the populist right‑wing government that has ruled for 12 years.