Student marchers reached Belgrade from across Serbia on Wednesday, and the Associated Press and N1 reported thousands gathered to welcome them ahead of a closing rally and Sunday’s snap parliamentary election.
People cheered during the arrival, and the two outlets reported fireworks as well. Organizers scheduled the closing rally at Slavija Square for 12 p.m. ET Thursday, Oct. 22 (16:00 UTC), under the slogan “Victory Is Calling.”
Serbia’s Republic Electoral Commission scheduled parliamentary voting for Oct. 25 and proclaimed Student List – Students Win as an electoral list. The commission placed it third in ballot order among 18 registered lists for 250 parliamentary seats.
The movement emerged after a canopy collapsed at Novi Sad railway station on Nov. 1, 2024, killing 16 people. The European Commission’s 2025 Serbia report said the collapse prompted nationwide student and citizen protests over corruption and concerns about government accountability and transparency. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), through its Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), said demands for accountability and the rule of law developed into calls for an early election.
The Associated Press reported that the marches aimed to reach rural areas it described as traditional strongholds of former Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. Students have also taken their anti-corruption campaign to voters, EconoTimes previously reported.
Vučić, who left office Sept. 27 and now heads the ruling party’s ballot list, held a rally in Niš on Wednesday and said he expected his party to win, the Associated Press reported. “There will be no more politics in schools and at faculties,” Vučić said, according to the agency.
Voters are scheduled to cast ballots Sunday, Oct. 25.
