Serbia’s student-backed Student List won a preliminary parliamentary majority as Belgrade reopened Pioneers Park after members of the public removed barriers around an 18-month pro-government camp.
Preliminary results from the Republic Electoral Commission (RIK), based on 8,187 polling stations, gave the slate 52.71% of the vote and 140 seats in the 250-member National Assembly. The “Aleksandar Vučić – United Serbia” list received 39.17% and 104 seats.
N1 reported that people took down the park’s barriers Sunday night, Oct. 25, allowing the grounds to reopen. The broadcaster said the fenced park had housed the pro-government Caciland encampment for about 18 months. Pioneers Park stands between Serbia’s parliament and presidency buildings.
On Monday, Oct. 26, volunteers joined municipal workers to remove what remained of the camp and clean the playground, The Guardian reported. Volunteer Radomir Dalic told the newspaper: “Yesterday was a big victory, so today is the smell of freedom.”
The vote followed a student-led campaign that grew from calls for accountability after a canopy collapsed at Novi Sad’s railway station, killing 16 people in November 2024, as EconoTimes reported in its pre-election coverage of the student slate. The Student List’s published 11-point Student Plan includes proposals on corruption and court independence, media freedom, affordable housing and access to health care.
The Guardian noted that anti-corruption messaging also helped Aleksandar Vučić and the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) win in 2012. Before the vote, the Student List had not named a prime minister candidate or cabinet, the newspaper reported. Kurt Bassuener, co-founder of the Democratization Policy Council, told The Guardian that divisions within the broad movement could emerge as it begins forming a government. The Assembly elects Serbia’s government, making cabinet formation the next step.