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In a shocking upset, a student movement resoundingly beat longtime Serbian leader President Aleksandar Vucic, ending his time in power after 14 years. Vucic dominated Serbian politics since becoming president of the Serbian Progressive Party, or SNS, in 2012, then becoming prime minister in 2014, then switching over to president in 2017. Serbia occupies a […]

Aleksandar Vučić, the longtime nationalist and populist leader of Serbia, conceded defeat in the country's parliamentary election while arguing that the student-led movement that won was backed by the same "deep American state" that works "against President Trump." The post Serbia’s Nationalist Leader Concedes Defeat to ‘Deep State’-Backed Student Movement, Vows to Return appeared first on Breitbart .

Brazil is not the only country to have had dramatic election results this weekend. In Serbia, longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic lost a historic election that brought down his government. William Brangham discussed the results with Heather Conley.

Venezuela’s opposition leader María Corina Machado greeted crowds in Caracas after nearly 10 months in exile, while student protesters powered the ouster of Serbia’s strongman leader after 14 years in power.

This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here. Vox isn’t typically in the business of covering elections in far-flung locales like the central Balkans. (No offense whatsoever to anyone from the central Balkans!) But on Sunday, an insurgent student-backed movement in Serbia […]

After freedom, we want to give our people something radical: a normal, functioning state Two years ago, I harboured no political ambition whatsoever. I was a student at the faculty of technical sciences in Novi Sad, my home town, pursuing a PhD in human resources and simply living my life. That was until the canopy collapse at the newly renovated train station in Novi Sad in November 2024, which killed 16 people. I took part in street protests and rallies in response to this shocking event, and like many others, realised that it needed to be a turning point. This was not an unavoidable tragedy. Systemic corruption and a culture of entrenched impunity were obvious factors in the collapse. But instead of ordering a full and impartial investigation and coming clean on official failings, the authorities began pushing back against us for demanding justice. We were vilified and attacked in the streets but law enforcement did nothing. So we took refuge in our lecture halls and schools, barricading ourselves inside faculty buildings, ready for a long haul. Novak Simin is a member of Serbia’s Student List movement Continue reading...

Two years after the Novi Sad tragedy gave birth to a youthful political movement, Sunday’s remarkable election has taken the country into a new era This weekend it will be two years since the collapse of a shoddily constructed train station canopy in Serbia’s second city, Novi Sad. The tragedy , killing 16 people, was swiftly attributed to state corruption and failures of regulation, sparking student-led protests across the country. Some of those demonstrators dared to imagine that they could become the catalyst for a democratic revolution. Continue reading...

President Aleksandar Vucic of Serbia conceded defeat Sunday in an election that pitted him against a student-led movement. Those students managed to turn public anger into an electoral force capable of removing a ruling party that once looked invincible. Now they must turn that force into a functioning government. The preliminary results give the Students’ […]

Non-hierarchical movement is seeking to ‘rebuild society’ in Balkan country after years of authoritarian rule Serbia’s triumphant but untested Student List movement is preparing to start talks on forming a government capable of reversing 14 years of increasingly authoritarian nationalist rule, after a seismic weekend election win . Supporters of the movement, which has no experience of government, took to the streets in the west Balkan country on Monday after the strongman former president, Aleksandar Vučić, was defeated in a historic landslide. Continue reading...

Serbia’s longtime leader Aleksander Vučić has been swept out of power by a historic student-led opposition movement against Vučić’s right-wing Serbian Progressive Party. Candidates from the Student List, who are not students themselves but largely first-time politicians selected by student-led popular assemblies, won a majority of seats in Sunday’s parliamentary elections, marking a seismic shift in Serbian politics. Their victory comes two years into a student-led movement sparked by the collapse of a roof at a train station in the city of Novi Sad, which killed 16 people. The disaster became a focal point for anti-government protests over corruption, cronyism, political violence and democratic backsliding. “Students really changed the whole political landscape of the country, and maybe even more important, they changed political imagination. They changed our understanding of what’s politically possible for all of us,” says journalist Lela Vujanić, who speaks to us from Belgrade about the groundbreaking elections. “This was a great democratic opening and democratic awakening, not only for the students, but for the rest of the country also.”

Longtime Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic lost a consequential parliamentary election on Sunday to the grassroots Student List party.

Serbia’s surprise rejection of veteran leader Aleksandar Vucic hands political power to an opaque protest movement with no track record.

The morning after the surprise defeat of longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic, Serbian voters still didn’t know who will replace him.

Hopes raised for a reset in relations with EU and other partners following the defeat of authoritarian president Serbian leader ousted by student movement in seismic election Hungary’s prime minister Péter Magyar – who came into power after ousting Viktor Orbán earlier this year – is clearly emotionally invested in the events in Serbia. After posting several times last night and drawing ( somewhat imperfect, but understandable ) parallels between the two victories, he is back at it this morning: “ Surely I wasn’t the only one feeling nostalgic when I saw those pictures coming out of Serbia last night? It’s symbolic that the “Budapest Express” reached Belgrade in politics before it did on the tracks.” Continue reading...

Hundreds of thousands mark student-led victory on the same streets that were once the scene of police beatings Serbian leader Aleksandar Vučić ousted by student movement in seismic election Standing on the streets of Belgrade, as passing cars honked excitedly and revellers high-fived police officers, Sara, 24, gestures to the streets around her to explain just how much things had changed for Serbia’s student-led movement. Moments earlier, the country’s longstanding leader, Aleksandar Vučić, had conceded defeat to the student movement, ushering in a seismic political shift in the Balkan country. Continue reading...

Serbia's longtime nationalist leader Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat Sunday in snap parliamentary elections to a student-led opposition movement.

Vučić’s 12-year reign looks to have been ended by record turnout of voters in election provoked by student-led protests The long-serving leader of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, has conceded defeat, ushering in a seismic political shift after a historic election that saw ​the increasingly authoritarian leader pitted against a student-led movement that had spent two years protesting against his government. Vučić pointed to preliminary results that suggested voters had overwhelmingly backed the students, potentially giving them a majority in the country’s 250-seat parliament. Continue reading...

A student-led protest movement has ended the 14-year rule of Serbia's right-wing party, former President Aleksandar Vučić conceded Sunday. Why it matters: The historic upset sidelines a Balkan strongman who courted President Trump's family and allies, raising questions about future U.S. relations with a country that has balanced ties with Russia and the West. Vučić 's outreach has included the president's son Donald Trump Jr. and longtime ally Richard Grenell, while a proposed development involving Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner became embroiled in controversy. The big picture: The movement's electoral breakthrough reflects a broader wave of youth activism in Europe, where young people have mobilized over corruption, education and economic pressures. The victory could usher in democratic reforms in Serbia, where Vučić consolidated power. Driving the news: Vučić said Sunday evening it was "clear" that his Serbian Progressive Party had lost to the student-backed electoral movement, although official results had yet to be announced, according to translations of his announcement . He projected the Student List would win between 135 and 140 seats in the 250-seat parliament, compared with 105 for his coalition. Cardiologist Ilija Srdanović heads the Student List, though the grassroots movement emphasized its decentralized leadership. The result echoes the student-led movement that helped topple Slobodan Milošević in 2000 , with Serbians reviving that era's "He's finished!" rallying cry as they celebrated Sunday. Context: The movement emerged from mass protests after the November 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad that killed 16 people, fueling public anger over alleged government corruption. It subsequently evolved into an electoral movement campaigning for accountability and institutional reform. What's next: The Student List must choose a prime minister and form a government while Serbia faces a separate presidential election in December to replace Vučić.

It was a seismic political shift in the Balkan country where Vucic led with virtually absolute power for 14 years.

It was a seismic political shift in the Balkan country where Vucic, who had been endorsed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and who denounced the student movement as a foreign-led attempt to unseat him, led with virtually absolute power for 14 years.

Aleksandar Vucic, who denounced the oppositional student movement as a foreign-led attempt to unseat him, led with virtually absolute power for 14 years.

Serbian leader Aleksandar Vucic conceded electoral defeat Sunday, marking a major political turning point for a country he helped guide through 14 years of economic development, infrastructure expansion, and efforts to strengthen relations with the West.

Article URL: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/serbia-votes-students-seek-unseat-vucic-snap-election-2026-10-25/ Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50236081 Points: 206 # Comments: 113

Serbian longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic surprisingly conceded defeat in a snap vote on Sunday, saying the student-backed movement that challenged him won the election.

The Student List movement is taking on authoritarian leader following nearly two years of protests against government and institutional corruption What is at stake in Serbia’s election? The latest turnout projection by Ipsos/Cesid suggests a turnout of 60.8% by 5pm local time (4pm UK), with three hours still to go until the polling stations close. That’s more than 13 percentage points higher than in 2023, and would be the highest turnout since mid-2000s. “ What hasn’t motivated me? There isn’t a single reason I could give that would keep me from showing up at my polling station at 6:20 in the morning.” Continue reading...