Serbia’s Perpetual Strongman Meets an Unlikely Reckoning

For over a decade, Aleksandar Vučić has run Serbia like a personal enterprise, playing a familiar geopolitical game of balancing Brussels, Moscow, and Beijing while pointing to a decade of economic growth. Now, a tragic structural disaster and an unconventional political movement have brought his long-standing grip on power to an exceptionally tight contest.

The fatal collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad, which cost 16 lives, shattered the regime's usual crisis routine. Because the station formed a central piece of the Belgrade-Budapest high-speed rail project, finding a convenient scapegoat proved unusually difficult for Vučić. The tragedy sparked almost two years of anti-corruption protests, giving birth to the Student List—an opposition coalition holding the third spot on the ballot paper.

Rather than relying on professional politicians, student assemblies across university faculties selected 250 candidates, ranging from engineers and economists to academics and athletes. Leading the list is Ilija Srdanović, a university professor and cardiologist who arrives at campaign events on a motorbike in a bright yellow jacket. The movement operates without a central leader or formal hierarchy, standing in direct contrast to the centralized authority of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party.

Vučić, who stepped down from the presidency last month to run once more for prime minister, has weaponized state institutions and media coverage since taking power in 2012. International election observers documented an overwhelming ruling party advantage in 2023, citing media bias and administrative abuse. In response to the student-backed challenge, Vučić has framed the opposition as foreign-sponsored agitators while reminding voters that Serbia's relations with Moscow and Beijing could be severed if power shifts.

Meanwhile, Serbia's fitful accession negotiations with the European Union drag on—reflecting Belgrade's long-standing refusal to choose between East and West. At the final campaign events, Vučić addressed supporters alone at the Belgrade Arena, while the Student List drew a reported 150,000 people to Slavija Square. Serbia's electorate must now decide between centralized power and a collective alternative.

Written by Sandy van Dongen sandy.vandongen@alpineweekly.com