Early reports point to record turnout in Serbia's election
Turnout in Serbia's snap parliamentary election had reached 46% by mid-afternoon, nearly a million more than at the same point in the previous vote. A student-led movement hopes to end President Aleksandar Vučić's long hold on power.
Serbia is holding a snap parliamentary election on Sunday, and early reports point to record turnout. By 14:00 local time (13:00 GMT), 46% of voters had cast ballots, nearly a million more than at the same stage of the previous election in December 2023. The vote will help decide whether Aleksandar Vučić and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), in power since 2012, stay in office.
Vučić, the right-wing populist president, called the election. It follows two years of student protests set off by the 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy that killed 16 people, a disaster many see as a symbol of corruption and negligence. Vučić and the SNS deny corruption and deny trying to influence the media.
The student list against long-term rule
The anti-corruption movement Student List is campaigning on a platform of removing officials who broke rules while cracking down on protesters, keeping party loyalists out of public enterprises, and freeing the public broadcaster from political control. Its 250 candidates include doctors, actors, academics and sports personalities. The list is headed by Ilija Srdanović, a professor at Novi Sad University, though he would not necessarily lead the country if it won.
Vučić has served two terms as president and cannot run for a third, so he is leading his party in a bid to return as prime minister, a post he left in 2017. He has promised higher pensions and public sector wages, plus investment in state healthcare. His supporters see him as a strong leader and point to economic growth and infrastructure improvements.
Tension and fraud concerns
Long queues formed at polling stations in several cities, and abroad in places including Ljubljana, Munich, Los Angeles and Chicago. In Belgrade, police closed streets around the Republic Electoral Commission. The students have placed at least two observers at each of the 8,210 polling stations. Videos on social media allegedly show ballot papers being filled in beforehand at a cafe in Nis, and there are reports of attacks on monitors and journalists.
Commentators say a final turnout of 65% or more would favour the students. Voting closes at 20:00, with first indications of results expected two hours later. Žarko Korać, a former deputy prime minister, warned that a close result with both sides claiming victory could lead to weeks or months of political instability.
