Serbian student group wins 141 seats to end 14-year rule

A leaderless student coalition won 141 seats in Serbia's 250-member parliament on Sunday, ending the 14-year hold of the Serbian Progressive party. The group, known as the Student List, secured 53 percent of the vote in a landslide that ousted former president Aleksandar Vučić from power.

Official projections from the Centre for Free Elections and Democracy in Belgrade placed the Student List at 141 seats. Vučić's party, the SNS, fell to 39 percent of the vote and 103 seats. Remaining seats went to national minority lists.

Vučić conceded defeat late Sunday, stopping his grip on Serbian politics abruptly. His defeat follows two years of anti-government protests that began after a canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station, killing 16 people. Supporters of the new movement took to the streets in Belgrade and other cities on Monday to celebrate the result.

The coalition operates without a formal hierarchy or single leader. Its candidate list included cardiologist Ilija Srdanović, former central bank governor Dejan Šoškić, and chemistry professor Radomir Saičić. The group has not yet named a prime minister or cabinet, relying on collective decision-making to guide its transition into executive power.

Ana Mirković, a university educationist and candidate, said the group views the victory as a debt to the people rather than a gain of privilege. She stated the first priority is the social and psychological detoxification of the country. Mirković told the Guardian that the new government aims to rebuild society from the ground up, focusing on full financial disclosure and a stronger judiciary.

The Student List platform pledges to fight corruption and restore the rule of law. Specific goals include creating an independent police unit accountable to prosecutors and purging officers linked to organized crime. The group also intends to ban party loyalists from state-owned companies and create independent bodies to scrutinize major infrastructure contracts.

The new administration faces a challenge similar to that of Hungary's Tisza party, which recently ended Viktor Orbán's rule. Serbian institutions remain staffed by civil servants loyal to the outgoing regime. Dušan Vučićević, an analyst, noted that the movement focused on domestic issues, insisting on the dismantling of institutions from the national to the local level.

The constitution requires the new parliament to convene within 30 days of the official result. A 90-day clock then starts for the formation of the government. Serbia must also hold new presidential elections before December 27, 2026, as Vučić stepped down from the presidency to run for prime minister.

International leaders reacted to the result on Monday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it a new chapter in the country's history. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Berlin would actively support Serbia's European path. The Kremlin expressed hope that the new leaders understand that cooperation with Russia serves Serbia's interests.

Nikola Burazer, a programme director at the Centre for Contemporary Politics in Belgrade, said the movement's decision-making process needs to speed up. He noted that selecting candidates took months and that the focus will shift from celebration to governance once the initial shock wears off. Vučić blamed his defeat on support from European countries and the US deep state.