Serbia votes on Sunday (October 25, 2026) in what is set to be its most fiercely contested parliamentary election in more than 14 years, as a student-led movement seeks to oust the party of veteran leader Aleksandar Vucic.
Eighteen electoral lists are vying for seats in Serbia’s 250-member Parliament, but polls suggest the contest is largely a choice between the ruling party and the student-backed list. The Students’ List, a selection of candidates backed by the largely leaderless movement, now poses the biggest challenge to Mr. Vucic’s right-wing populist Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), which has dominated politics throughout its tenure. Several leading opposition parties have opted not to run, instead urging supporters to back the students.
Mr. Vucic has also campaigned nationwide, embracing citizens in villages and towns, while repeatedly accusing the student movement of plotting a foreign-funded coup. Their protests have regularly drawn huge crowds, with a final pre-election rally in Belgrade on Thursday (October 22, 2026) drawing around 1,50,000 people to the streets, according to an independent protest monitor.
An unusually high turnout is expected among Serbia’s 6.4 million registered voters. For nearly two years, students have staged rallies and marched across the Balkan nation to reach voters directly and counter the SNS’s media machine.
