Serbian President Vucic announces tactical resignation

Election campaign without an election date

Serbian President Vucic announces tactical resignation

By leaving early, he will shorten his term in office by a few months. In an early parliamentary election, Vucic could then run as the ruling party’s top candidate.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has announced his early departure from the highest state office. “I will only be president for a few more weeks, then I will resign,” he said at a large rally of his supporters in the center of Belgrade. He added that he had offered to “help” the leadership of the ruling SNS party in the next elections.

Vucic’s second term as president ends normally at the end of May next year. He cannot compete a third time. The mandate of the current parliament ends normally in February 2028. The expectation is that Vucic will call an early parliamentary election and enter the race as the SNS’s top candidate to become prime minister if he wins the election.

He himself indicated several times that an early parliamentary election could take place this year. He has not yet given a specific date. As president, Vucic only has protocol-related powers. In fact, he has been making decisions on all important matters since 2012 Serbia alone, regardless of the function he performs. He was Prime Minister from 2014 to 2017.

Since the collapse of the train station canopy in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad in November 2024, Vucic and the Serbian government have been under pressure from a massive protest movement. The tragedy, which left 16 dead, is attributed to the corruption and incompetence of those in power. The judiciary controlled by Vucic has so far prevented those responsible from being held criminally responsible.

The protest movement arose from spontaneous university occupations by students and faculty that lasted almost a year. Meanwhile, citizens across the country joined her. The movement has been calling for an early election for about a year.

Opinion polls suggest a list created or supported by students could win the next general election. However, such a list does not yet exist.

The protest movement repeatedly brings large crowds onto the streets. The previous month, 180,000 people demonstrated in central Belgrade, according to the Archives of Public Gatherings, an independent group of experts.

According to a reporter from the dpa news agency, a large crowd turned out for Vucic’s rally on Saturday. Most participants traveled in an organized manner from different parts of the country. They traveled on buses provided by the ruling party SNS and entrepreneurs dependent on it.