Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić resigned on Sunday to pursue a bid to become prime minister in upcoming snap parliamentary elections that will test his rule in the Balkan country, which was rattled by nearly two years of protests.
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Vučić’s second presidential term would otherwise end in May next year. He is banned by the Serbian Constitution from seeking a third term and said he was resigning to lead his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party in the 25 October vote.
The governing populists face a major challenge at the ballot box from a youth-backed movement that led protests triggered by the 1 November 2024 train station canopy collapse in the northern city of Novi Said that killed 16 people.
University students demanded accountability for the tragedy. Their struggle for justice and against corruption has grown into a strong movement that will attempt to oust Vučić’s government after 14 years in power.
Vučić himself has been either prime minister or president for the past 12 years.
“I am resigning the duty of the President of the Republic,” Vučić said, reading the text of his resignation.
Tensions rising ahead of high-stakes election
The ballot in October will be held against a backdrop of high political tensions as Vučić’s populists seek to remain in office despite widespread popular discontent.
His decision to run for prime minister is seen as a carefully planned manoeuvre to retain a top positio, and to boost his party’s chances against the student movement.
Before signing his resignation, Vučić briefly addressed his supporters outside the presidency building in Belgrade.
He said “tonight is a very special occasion for me, my last evening in this beautiful building.”
“But I look to the future with joy, new victories await us,” he told the crowd as they chanted his name. “Let’s beat them (opponents) more convincingly than ever before.”
Vučić in recent weeks has toured the country tirelessly, opening new roads, offering assistance money and cheaper medicines and visiting voters in their homes. More recently, Vučić was filmed driving in his brother’s car to some of the events.
The prime minister in Serbia is formally more powerful than the president. But Vučić still took a dominant role during his two five-year terms, sometimes presiding over government sessions and routinely announcing all important decisions and plans.
The Independent Bureau for Social Research (BIRODI) has filed a complaint alleging that Vučić has abused a public institution as president to promote his party, which he has dismissed.
There has been no response from the anti-corruption authorities that are under government control.
Presidential vote to be held later
After Vučić’s resignation, the acting president will be close ally and former prime minister, Ana Brnabić, who is the outgoing speaker of Serbia’s 250-member Parliament.
Vučić said the first round of the early presidential election must be held by the end of this year because of a 90-day deadline.
Vučić and his party have been accused of rampant corruption, organised crime links and a clampdown on democratic freedoms, including the critical media.
The SNS party has gradually taken control over all state institutions since coming to power in 2012, while denying abuse of office and repeatedly pledging to fight graft.
The student-backed election list includes little-known experts, professors, teachers, athletes and other individuals from all walks of life.
Groups of students have been touring the country on bicycles as part of their campaign calling for the rule of law and an end to corruption.
Analysts say the student group and Vučić are polling close, heralding a tight race and a referendum-like atmosphere.
Also running are Vučić’s allies, the Socialist Party, a pro-EU opposition alliance and several smaller groups.
Vučić said that as of Monday, he will be “everywhere in Serbia to listen to the people.” While praising his government’s achievements, Vučić contended that “I have made mistakes but I have worked diligently like hardly anyone in this position.”
Vučić also said he had pardoned 49 people before leaving the office, including 23 who have been prosecuted for alleged offences during the protests. They include a group of anti-government activists who fled Serbia after being accused of anti-state activities.
Authorities have pushed hard against protesters with police violence and detentions as Vučić, without offering evidence, accused his opponents and critical media of intending to “destroy the state” under unspecified foreign influence.
He told Serbia’s state-run RTS Television earlier on Sunday that foreign powers and unidentified people in the country plan to stir unrest on election night.
Serbia’s efforts to join the European Union have stalled under Vučić because of democratic backsliding and a refusal to join sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine.
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