Student-led movement seeks to unseat ruling party in Serbian election
Serbia's student-led protest movement is mounting its biggest challenge yet to former president Aleksandar Vucic, as voters prepare to elect a new parliament on Sunday after nearly two years of demonstrations against alleged corruption.
Issued on: 23/10/2026 - RFI
More than 100,000 people gathered in Belgrade in support of Serbia's youth movement on Thursday, in the final campaign rally ahead of polls that could see an end to the 12-year rule of populist strongman Aleksandar Vucic, leader of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).
Crowds chanted "victory" ahead of Sunday's vote, which comes after two years of student-led protests against Vucic.
The movement, which is fielding 250 candidates under the Student List banner, emerged after the collapse of a canopy at the newly renovated Novi Sad railway station killed 16 people.
The disaster fuelled public anger over alleged corruption and negligence, turning demands for accountability into a nationwide campaign against the government.
Aleksandar Vucic: from Milosevic minister to long-serving Serbian statesman
'Students are winning'
The students' campaign has attracted support beyond university campuses, drawing in farmers, actors, doctors and other professionals.
Several opposition parties have withdrawn in favour of the Student List, which has deliberately distanced itself from established political groups.
"I came to support the Student List because young people finally gave me hope that it is possible to live in a normal country," 47-year-old Marija Nedeljkovic Radic told French news agency AFP, as she arrived for the students' rally.
"Really, for the first time in my life, I believe that it's possible," she said.
"We are putting an end to 14 years of humiliation, chaos and betrayal, and to decades of putting personal and party interests above yours," university professor Jugoslav Gasic, one of 250 candidates on the Student List, told the crowd.
"You deserve better, and we know how to deliver it. Students are winning."
Contrasting polls
Vucic has been in power for 12 years, either as prime minister or president.
Faced with the growing opposition, he resigned as president in September and called snap elections – one of the students' key demands – to run for prime minister and extend his hold on Serbian politics.
Vucic has repeatedly accused the protesters of attempting a foreign-backed coup.
"Let us never forget how they tried to bring down our state. Let us always protect and defend it," he told his supporters on Thursday. "Let us go out and defeat them. Defeat them decisively."
Serbia lacks reliable independent polling, and surveys have produced widely differing results.
One published this week put the Student List ahead of Vucic's SNS party by 44.5 percent to 42.7 percent. Another, conducted in September, put the SNS 11 points ahead.
Intimidation and surveillance
The Student List candidates were selected through assemblies at universities and come from across Serbian society, including academics, doctors and scientists.
As well as fighting corruption, the movement promises to reform healthcare, housing and public institutions.
"The energy is unstoppable," said Ilija Srdanović, a cardiology professor and a leading candidate in the movement.
However, the ruling party has strong support from pro-government media outlets.
Activists have reported intimidation, arrests and surveillance, while digital rights group SHARE Foundation said people linked to the movement had been targeted with sophisticated spyware.
Serbian authorities have denied knowledge of the alleged spying.
Civil society groups have warned that conditions for a "free and fair" election were lacking.
"This assessment is not based on isolated incidents, opposition claims or political disagreement with the government," 24 organisations said in a recent joint statement, citing documented findings rather than isolated incidents.
(with newswires)
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More than 170 Serbian business leaders and tech executives have signed an open letter backing a student-led electoral list ahead of the October 25 parliamentary election.
The signatories include Branko Milutinovic, co-founder of video game developer Nordeus, Dragan Tomic, the vice president of engineering at US data analytics company Databricks and executives from technology companies AMD and Cisco.
The letter, titled "We believe in a Serbia that can do much more", expresses support for the Student List, which is challenging the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) of long-standing ruler Aleksandar Vucic in the October 25 election.
The signatories praised the students for their solidarity, responsibility and perseverance, saying their demands for functioning state institutions were essential to economic development.
It argued that the rule of law, reliable institutions, education and responsible management of public finances were necessary to attract investment, create better-paid jobs and secure pensions.
The signatories said legal certainty and courts that resolve disputes fairly would encourage companies to invest, hire workers and plan for the long term. They also highlighted the importance of cooperation between universities and businesses in improving productivity and helping companies enter new markets.
Among the other signatories are Ivan Stojisavljevic, Nordeus co-founder and Take-Two Interactive vice president; Marija Ilic, co-founder of video game studio Two Desperados and president of the Serbian Gaming Association's board; and Igor Bogicevic, co-founder of biotechnology startup Seven Bridges and HR analytics company Orgnostic.
The list also includes Dusan Komar and Laszlo Horvath, co-founders of Ominimo, which announced in July that it had reached a valuation of $1.6bn, becoming Serbia's first unicorn company as a startup valued at more than $1bn.
Other signatories include Nikola Mrksic, co-founder and chief executive of artificial intelligence company PolyAI, and Aleksandar Kuzmanovic, a computer science professor at Northwestern University and co-founder of bloXroute Labs.
The signatories said they were expressing support in their personal capacities and called on other businesspeople and entrepreneurs to join them.
"We support the Student List, number 3, and we will vote for it on Sunday," the letter said, adding that the students needed an opportunity to put their proposals into practice.
The student movement emerged from anti-government protests that followed the collapse of a railway station canopy in the northern city of Novi Sad in November 2024, a disaster that killed 16 people and fuelled public anger over alleged corruption and accountability.
The election is being held more than a year ahead of schedule amid sustained protests and growing political pressure on Vucic and the SNS, which has dominated Serbian politics for more than a decade.
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