Serbia’s student-led movement has dealt a historic blow to long-time leader Aleksandar Vučić, turning protests over a deadly railway station accident into an electoral challenge that has shaken the country’s political establishment. Vučić conceded defeat on Sunday, October 25, after a parliamentary election that pitted his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) against the student-backed Student List. Although final official results were still awaited, Vučić acknowledged that his political camp had lost, estimating that the student-backed candidates would win between 135 and 140 seats in the 250-member parliament, while his side would secure 105.
The result marks a major setback for a political establishment that has dominated Serbian politics since the SNS came to power in 2012. Vučić became prime minister in 2014 and president in 2017, consolidating his influence over the country’s political system. What makes the election particularly significant is how the challenge began. It did not emerge from a conventional opposition campaign. Instead, it grew out of public anger following a railway station disaster in November 2024, when the collapse of a concrete canopy killed 16 people in the northern city of Novi Sad.
