Serbian voters turned out in force on Sunday, October 25, in a snap parliamentary election that pits longtime populist leader Aleksandar Vucic against a mass student protest movement, in the biggest challenge to his rule in more than a decade.

The election was called by Vucic in September, after almost two years of student-led demonstrations against perceived corruption and creeping authoritarianism. The protests were triggered by the deaths of 16 people when a train station canopy collapsed in the city of Novi Sad in 2024, and the movement has since gained widespread support across the Balkan country of some six million people.

Turnout surges early

Unusually long lines formed at polling stations in cities and towns across the country, with queues forming before doors opened at 7 a.m. Pollster CeSID put turnout at 12 percent by 9 a.m., more than double the 5.2 percent recorded at the same hour in the previous parliamentary election in 2023, according to monitoring groups CeSID and Ipsos. Even Vucic waited in line for nearly two hours to cast his vote.

Vucic accepted the Serbian Progressive Party's nomination on September 5 to head its list as candidate for prime minister, dissolved parliament on September 9 and resigned as president on September 27, making the vote a direct test of his leadership. Vucic, 56, has dominated Serbian politics since 2012. Polls close at 8 p.m. local time, with first indications of results expected around two hours later, while official tallies are not expected before Monday.

A tight race, polls suggest

Opinion polls have pointed to a tight race, though pre-election surveys disagreed with each other, and turnout may prove decisive. A total of 126 of the 250 parliamentary seats is needed for a majority, so a fragmented result could leave the shape of the next government uncertain even after the first projections.

The two sides offer sharply different accounts of Vucic's record. Many voters thank him for pulling Serbia from economic obscurity and overseeing a period of sustained modernisation, including new highways, railways, schools and hospitals. His critics, led by the students, accuse his government of corruption and of concentrating power, charges the movement has pressed in street protests for nearly two years.

Why the result matters beyond Serbia

A student victory would be a profound political shift, reminiscent of the defeat of Hungary's Viktor Orban in April, Reuters reported. It could also offer a blueprint for other student movements across Europe, which have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest against poor education standards and a lack of prospects.

For now, the outcome rests with voters who turned out in numbers not seen at this stage of a Serbian election for years. Once the polls close and the count begins, Serbia will learn whether its student movement has ended Vucic's long grip on power or whether the incumbent's party has held on against its strongest challenge yet.