Serbia’s Vucic concedes election defeat as student-backed opposition leads parliamentary vote
- Vucic blames his electoral defeat on interference by several European countries and the ‘American deep state’
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- Vucic blames his electoral defeat on interference by several European countries and the ‘American deep state’
By Talha Ozturk
BELGRADE (AA) - Serbia’s former President Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat in Sunday’s snap parliamentary elections as preliminary projections showed a student-backed opposition list winning the most seats.
Speaking at the headquarters of his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in Belgrade, Vucic conceded that his electoral list had lost, according to preliminary projections.
“We don’t have the results yet. Many will be surprised, and you will realize how much some people have lied,” he said.
“Based on the stratified sample, it is clear that we have lost these elections,” he added.
Vucic said the student-backed list was expected to secure between 135 and 140 seats in Serbia’s 250-member National Assembly, while his “United Serbia” coalition would win approximately 105 seats.
He also blamed his electoral defeat on what he described as interference by several European countries and the “American deep state.”
He accused foreign actors of influencing Serbia’s political developments and contributing to the outcome of the elections.
According to preliminary projections released by the polling agency Ipsos and the Center for Free Elections and Democracy (CeSID), the “Students Win” electoral list received 52% of the vote compared with 39.3% for Vucic’s “United Serbia” coalition.
The Socialist Party-led “Factor of Stability” coalition, headed by Ivica Dacic, received 2.3%, according to projections based on 56% of the processed sample.
A separate projection by the election monitoring organization CRTA gave the student-backed list 51.47% and Vucic’s coalition 40.42%.
The results remain preliminary, pending confirmation by Serbia’s Republic Electoral Commission.
The projected results represent a significant setback for Vucic’s SNS, which has dominated Serbian politics since 2012.
In the December 2023 parliamentary elections, the SNS-led coalition secured 46.75% of the vote and 129 seats, winning an outright majority.
The largest opposition coalition at the time, Serbia Against Violence, received 23.66% and 65 seats, while Dacic’s Socialist Party-led coalition won 6.55% and 18 seats.
Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic congratulated the student-backed electoral list on its reported victory, expressing hope that the result would improve relations between the neighboring countries.
In a post on the US social media platform X, Milatovic praised Serbian citizens for expressing their democratic will through the vote.
He said he expected the election outcome to contribute to a new chapter in Montenegro-Serbia relations based on friendship, sincere dialogue and a shared European future.
The elections also included several political groups representing Serbia’s Bosniak community, particularly in the southwestern region.
Among them were the Justice and Reconciliation Party (SPP) associated with Usame Zukorlic, the Party of Democratic Action of Sandzak (SDA Sandzaka) led by Sulejman Ugljanin, and a separate electoral list headed by Rasim Ljajic.
In the 2023 parliamentary elections, Zukorlic’s electoral list received approximately 0.76% of the vote and secured two seats, while Ugljanin’s SDA Sandzaka won approximately 0.57% and also secured two seats.
Ljajic’s Social Democratic Party of Serbia contested the previous elections as part of the SNS-led coalition.
Under Serbian electoral law, recognized national minority lists are exempt from the 3% parliamentary threshold and benefit from special provisions in the allocation of seats.
The final representation of Bosniak minority parties in the new parliament will depend on the official election results.
Sunday’s elections were marked by high voter turnout, long lines at polling stations and numerous reports of irregularities.
Voter turnout reached 67.6% by 7 pm, according to Ipsos and CeSID estimates, exceeding the final turnout of approximately 58.7% recorded in the December 2023 elections.
CeSID said it had received more than 300 reports of possible irregularities by 8 pm.
The reported incidents included voters allegedly casting ballots without identification, photographing completed ballots, group voting, technical problems at polling stations and suspected voter intimidation and vote buying.
The organization said it was continuing to verify the reports.
The elections followed nearly two years of anti-government demonstrations triggered by the November 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad that killed 16 people.
The tragedy sparked widespread protests led by university students, who demanded accountability and action against alleged corruption.
The student movement subsequently emerged as a major political challenger to Vucic’s SNS.
Sunday’s vote marked Serbia’s 15th parliamentary election since the reintroduction of multiparty politics in 1990 and its 10th early election.
The Republic Electoral Commission is expected to release further results as vote counting continues.
Mustafa Talha Öztürk