After 2 years of anti-corruption protests, the Serbian student movement overthrew the strongman Vucic: What caused his defeat? | Today’s news
Aleksandar Vučić, Serbia’s former president and longtime leader who dominates the country’s politics, conceded defeat on Sunday (October 25th) after a snap vote, saying the student movement “Student List” had won the election after challenging him.
Addressing his supporters in Belgrade as early election results were still coming in, Vučić announced that Student List had won, adding that it had received “direct support from some European countries and the American deep state, which is also against President Trump.” He called the movement “just contractors doing a very dirty job” without providing evidence for his claims. Student List won over two million votes in the Balkan country with 6.5 million inhabitants.
Vucic, a former president who has ruled Serbia for more than a decade, stepped down in September in hopes of returning as prime minister of the Balkan country. But his plan failed after the Student List gained national support and brought about 69% of voters to the polls, a record turnout, Bloomberg reported.
What caused the defeat of Aleksandar Vucic?
Vučič has dominated the country’s politics for a long time. During this time, he skillfully balanced the conflicting interests of maintaining close relations with Russia, China and the administration of US President Donald Trump, while seeking to join the European Union. However, his defeat was sparked by a grassroots protest movement following outrage over a deadly construction disaster that eventually led to his resignation.
In November 2024, a concrete roof collapsed over the entrance to a railway station in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad, killing at least 16 people. Vucic, who was president at the time, confirmed in a national address that the original number of victims was 14, including a six-year-old girl and a citizen of North Macedonia, AP reported.
The train station has reportedly been renovated twice in recent years. Critics of Vucic’s government attributed the tragedy to corruption and sloppy renovations, and members of opposition parties planned to protest on November 2, the day after the incident.
The protests were led by university students who blamed corruption and incompetence of Vucic’s officials for the death. According to AFP, the students continued to hold rallies and marches across the country for nearly two years to directly address voters and oppose the media machine of the former president’s Serbian Progressive Party. Their protests have attracted huge crowds, with the last election rally on October 22 in Belgrade attracting over 150,000 people.
The continued protests eventually prompted Vučić to call early parliamentary elections in September and resign from the presidency to seek the post of prime minister. But a student-backed movement turned public anger into electoral support and defeated his bid to return as prime minister.
(with input from agencies)
