BELGRADE (Azat TV) – Longtime Serbian leader Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat on October 26, 2026, to the student-backed opposition movement ‘Students’ List’ in a snap parliamentary election, bringing an end to 14 years of rule by Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). Initial projections released by polling agencies Ipsos and CeSID, reported by MENAFN, showed the student-led coalition securing 52 percent of the vote, well ahead of the SNS-led coalition at 39.3 percent.
Speaking at his campaign headquarters in Belgrade before final official results were available, Vucic acknowledged that a stratified sample indicated his bloc had lost the election. Projections indicated the student-backed list would win between 135 and 140 seats in the 250-member unicameral parliament, achieving a single-party majority, while the SNS-led coalition was projected to secure around 105 seats. Vucic stated that the opposition movement received approximately 2.2 million votes, compared to roughly 1.72 million for his coalition.
The Catalyst: The Novi Sad Tragedy and Two Years of Protests
The political upheaval follows nearly two years of mass anti-corruption protests and university blockades across Serbia. The public anger was originally triggered by the November 2024 collapse of a concrete railway station canopy in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people. Demonstrators held the government responsible for alleged corruption, cronyism, and severe safety failures during renovation work at the station.
The student-backed movement emerged directly from this sustained public grief and outrage, building a broad coalition that drew support from citizens disillusioned with established political parties. Although university students spearheaded the mobilization, their electoral list featured relatively unknown experts, academics, farmers, athletes, and artists rather than career politicians, presenting itself as a non-partisan platform to restore institutional accountability and democracy.
Electoral Shifts and Public Celebrations
Sunday’s vote determined all 250 seats in Serbia’s unicameral parliament, requiring 126 seats for a working majority. Approximately 6.45 million voters were eligible to cast ballots across 8,392 polling stations, with 18 electoral lists competing. Following Vucic’s concession, celebratory crowds filled the streets of Belgrade, honking car horns, singing, and chanting slogans. Protesters also tore down fences and burned tents at a central park camp that had been occupied by Vucic loyalists for more than a year.
Prominent student candidate Radomir Saicic, a University of Belgrade professor and member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, hailed the outcome as a historic triumph for the nation. “Tonight the voice of the people is heard,” Saicic declared, as reported by MENAFN. “This is a victory of courage over fear, a victory of hope over apathy.”
Political Aftermath and Institutional Stakes
Vucic, who resigned from the presidency on September 27 to lead his party’s parliamentary campaign, attributed his bloc’s defeat to foreign support for the protest movement, claiming interference from European countries and an “American deep state,” according to Mathrubhumi. He pledged that his political movement would remain united and continue its operations from the opposition benches.
The outcome marks the most significant electoral setback for the SNS since it assumed power in 2012. With the student-led movement positioned to form a single-party majority, the country faces a pivotal transition centered on judicial independence, anti-corruption reforms, and governance standards as an EU candidate state.