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Serbian Students Oust Longtime Ruler in Historic Election
· Confirmed
In Short: In a historic election, Serbia's student-led movement defeated longtime ruler Aleksandar Vucic, signaling a shift in the country's political landscape.
In a historic election, Serbia's student-led movement, known as the Student List, ousted longtime ruler Aleksandar Vucic, marking a significant shift in the country's political landscape.
Vucic, who has served as Serbia's leader since 2012, conceded defeat on Sunday night, citing preliminary results that showed the Student List surging ahead.
The Student List, which emerged from nearly two years of anti-corruption protests, has gained widespread support among young Serbians outraged by the deaths of 16 people in a railway station canopy collapse in Novi Sad in 2024.
The movement, which does not have a single leader but is instead a coalition of 250 candidates, has been running neck and neck with Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in recent polls.
According to a poll published by New Serbian Political Thought, an independent pollster, the Student List was narrowly ahead of the Progressive Party, at 44.5% to Vučić’s 42.7% — the first time an opposition list has led a national poll ahead of an election in over a decade.
Vucic, in his concession speech, projected that his party would secure around 105 seats, while the Student List would take between 135 and 140 seats.
The election, which was called after almost two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and authoritarianism, saw a reported 150,000 supporters turn out for the final rally in Belgrade's Slavija Square.
Supporters of the Student List rallied with cutouts of Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic and shone their mobile phones and light flares during the final campaign rally, signaling their determination to oust Vucic.
Vucic, who has maintained strong support among a significant section of Serbia's population, acknowledged the loss, saying, “We do not have the final results yet. Many will be surprised, and you will realize just how much some have lied.”
The election, which was marred by concerns over media bias and cyberattacks on activists, saw a record turnout, with voters queuing at polling places around the country early Sunday.
The Student List's success is also expected to impact Serbia's negotiations for EU membership, as the movement has pushed for reforms on the rule of law, media freedom, and the fight against corruption.
While the Student List has emerged victorious, no student has been elected to parliament, highlighting the movement's broader appeal beyond its initial student base.
What this adds
The Student List's victory marks the first time in over a decade that an opposition list has led a national poll ahead of an election.
The election's outcome could have broader implications for Serbia's relationship with the European Union and its stance on issues such as corruption and media freedom.
Background
More than 600 police officers were injured in the clashes, according to Agathe Foucault, a spokesperson for the national police, who spoke to RTL radio on Saturday.
What's confirmed
- Support for the student movement has grown since the protests first started in November 2024.
- People hold a cutout of Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic during the final "Student List – Students Win" rally ahead of a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct.
- People shine the lights of they mobile phones and light flares during the final "Student List – Students Win" rally ahead of a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct.
- On Sunday, Serbia is bracing for what could be its most uncertain and high-stakes elections in 14 years, with the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, facing a challenge that has emerged out of a two-year student-led protest movement.
- Hundreds of thousands of supporters of Serbia’s protesting students have gathered for the final campaign rally ahead of the tense parliamentary election on weekend in a mounting challenge to the Balkan country’s powerful strongman Aleksandar Vucic.
- "You deserve better, and we know how to deliver it. Students are winning!"
- Serbia's 6.4 million voters were electing lawmakers to the 250-member Parliament.
- "We stand ready to support reforms on the rule of law, media freedom, the fight against corruption and strong democratic institutions, and to work together to advance Serbia's future in the European Union," von der Leyen said on X.
- “Dear Serbia, tonight the voice of the people is being heard,” said Radomir Saičić, a professor at Belgrade University, speaking on behalf of the students at their headquarters.
- People celebrate after Aleksandar Vucic, leader of the right-wing Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) conceded defeat in the parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Oct.
- In conceding the election, Vucic said his party projects that his opponents, the youth-backed Students’ List, will take between 135 and 140 seats while his SNS party will have around 105.
- "It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won," Mr Vucic said in a televised speech.
What's still developing
- Voters in Serbia will decide in a tense parliamentary ballot this weekend whether to extend the 14-year rule of Russia-backed populist strongman Aleksandar Vucic or back a youth movement behind nearly two years of protests seeking political changes in the Balkan country.
- Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic resigned from the presidency in September and is running for prime minister in parliamentary elections considered to be one of the most competitive elections for Serbia in recent memory.
- "This year it's going to be over 100 billion euros, which is $120 billion."
- The Council of Europe commissioner for human rights, Michael O’Flaherty, criticised Serbia’s government in a report this week and said he “will monitor the situation closely” on Saturday.
- “These are the first elections in a long time whose outcome is entirely uncertain,” Nebojsa Vladisavljevic, a professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, told BIRN.
- Whatever Vučić's title, there has never been any doubt that he was the man in charge – an image enthusiastically promoted by Serbia's largely uncritical media.
- Even though Serbia's 6.4 million voters can choose from multiple parties, the vote is shaping up to be a referendum between Vucic and his SNS party on one side, and the Students' List on the other.
- Serbia is negotiating for membership in the European Union (EU).
- Watchdog organizations have noted that the student movement and other prominent opponents of Vučić are also being targeted by cyberattacks.
- But the student-led movement is “heavily depersonalized,” said Novaković, and is focused on issues with broad electoral appeal.
- Aleksandar Vucic says Serbia is deepening ties with Washington while balancing relations with Russia and China, standing by Israel and resisting calls to recognize Kosovo.
- Issued on: 25/10/2026 - 08:14 Modified: 25/10/2026 - 10:41 Though Serbia 's 6.4 million voters get to choose from 18 parties hoping to enter the 250-member Parliament, the election has taken shaped as a referendum between Vucic's right-wing Serbian Progressive Party and the youth-backed Students' List.