Serbia votes as student movement challenges Vucic

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 25 Oct, 04:32 · Archive

Serbians vote on Sunday in a snap election where a student-led protest movement seeks to unseat long-time leader Aleksandar Vucic.

Serbians will vote on Sunday in snap parliamentary elections called by Aleksandar Vucic in September. The election comes after almost two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and creeping authoritarianism in the Balkan country of some six million people.

The protests were triggered by the deaths of 16 people when a train station canopy collapsed in the city of Novi Sad in 2024. The student movement has since gained widespread support and now seeks to unseat Vucic, who held power first as prime minister and then as president for more than a decade. A student victory would represent a profound political shift, reminiscent of the defeat of Hungary's Viktor Orban in April.

Vucic, who resigned as president to run again for prime minister, remains a strong incumbent. Many voters credit him with pulling Serbia from economic obscurity and modernising the country through new highways, railways, schools and hospitals. He has pledged higher pensions and public sector salaries, investment in state healthcare and subsidies for young couples. On the international stage, he has balanced closer ties with China and Russia while leaving the door open to joining the European Union. The students' agenda focuses on rooting out graft and improving schooling, but they have been quieter on international ambitions.

How it is being reported

• Serbia votes as students seek to unseat Vucic in pollSerbians will vote in an election that comes after two years of anti-government, student-led protests against long-time populist leader Aleksandar Vucic.Perth Now · 25 Oct, 04:10
• Serbia votes as students seek to unseat Vucic in pollSerbians will vote in an election that comes after two years of anti-government, student-led protests against long-time populist leader Aleksandar Vucic.The West Australian · 25 Oct, 04:10

In this story: Aleksandar Vucic · Serbia · Novi Sad · Viktor Orban · Hungary · China · Russia · European Union

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