Vucic concedes defeat in Serbia's parliamentary election

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic acknowledged losing a parliamentary election on Sunday, ending roughly 14 years in which he held nearly unchecked power. The result is a major shift for the Balkan country, and it came after two years of protests led by students against his government, according to CBS News.

Vucic had resigned the presidency the previous month to run for prime minister at the head of his Serbian Progressive Party. He told supporters that the Students' List had won, projecting it would take between 135 and 140 of the 250 parliamentary seats against about 105 for his party. He put the vote counts at around 2.2 million for the students and 1.7 million for his side, and he faulted independent media, unnamed European countries and an "American deep state." Crowds poured into the streets of Belgrade and other cities to celebrate.

The protests began after 16 people died in 2024 when a concrete canopy fell at a train station in Novi Sad, which demonstrators tied to corruption. The Students' List fielded experts, athletes, farmers and artists rather than students themselves. Monitors expected turnout near 70%, and they logged dozens of irregularities, including signs of voter pressure and attempted vote buying.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CBS News’s reporting. Read the full story at CBS News →