Serbia's Student List wins majority as Vučić concedes election defeat

The result

The Student List, a movement built on student protests, won Serbia's parliamentary election held on Sunday, 25 October 2026. With almost 99% of votes counted, the State Electoral Commission gave the list 52.7%, ahead of 39.2% for the coalition led by the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) of Aleksandar Vučić. Vučić conceded defeat late on Sunday evening, and crowds filled the streets of Belgrade and other towns and cities. The outcome closes two years of peaceful anti-government demonstrations whose central demand was that Vučić leave power. He has dominated Serbian politics as prime minister or president since 2014.

Student List52.7%

SNS coalition39.2%

Student List

52.7 %

SNS coalition

39.2 %

Data from the article text

Seats and the path to government

Parliament has 250 seats. Reports based on the count give the Student List 139 of them and the SNS coalition 97, while the remaining seats go to parties representing national minorities. Preliminary figures put the Student List at between 135 and 140 seats, and a sample by the polling firm CESID-IPSPS projected 138. A separate preliminary tally cited by Euronews gave the SNS 32.3%, a figure well below the 39.2% reported by the Electoral Commission. Government formation starts only after the State Electoral Commission announces final results and parliament convenes, and the constitution allows up to 90 days from that point to form a government.

Student List139

SNS coalition97

Student List

139 seats

SNS coalition

97 seats

Data from the article text

Leadership and the movement

The movement has no single leader, a strategy adopted during the protests to guard against smear campaigns by the government. Its candidates include university professors, actors and farmers. Who will become prime minister is still unclear, although NewsIT describes Dejan Soskić, a professor at the Faculty of Economics and a former governor of the National Bank of Serbia, as the frontrunner. The movement's programme targets corruption and better education, but the reporting does not say how those goals would be pursued in office.

Protests and corruption allegations

The movement took shape after a canopy collapsed at the recently renovated railway station in Novi Sad in November 2024, killing 16 people and raising questions about government accountability and corruption. Critics of Vučić have for years accused him of corruption, favouritism in public tenders and near-total control of the media. During the campaign, and even on election day, rumours circulated that votes were being bought and that public employees were being pressured to back the ruling SNS. The reporting presents those claims as rumours rather than established facts.

Reaction in Brussels

European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated the Student List in a joint statement, saying they were ready to support reforms on the rule of law, media freedom and the fight against corruption. Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos said the EU door was open, while noting that a change of power does not automatically speed up accession talks. The new leadership will have to clarify its stance on Russia, its alignment with EU foreign policy and the normalisation of relations with Kosovo, questions on which the student movement has avoided firm commitments. Deutsche Welle reported that Vučić kept close ties with Moscow and avoided aligning with European sanctions. Jelena Vasiljević, a senior researcher at the University of Belgrade, told Euronews that removing Vučić was the precondition for Serbia's European future.

Brazil in the same coverage

Brazil's presidential election was reported alongside the Serbian vote. Lula da Silva was re-elected with 51.79%, against 48.21% for Flávio Bolsonaro, a margin of more than four million votes according to Naftemporiki. Deutsche Welle reported that Bolsonaro disputed the result, while the Supreme Electoral Court confirmed the victory was mathematically secured once 98.87% of polling stations had been counted. Ursula von der Leyen telephoned Lula to congratulate him, describing the EU and Brazil as strong partners.