A country that spent years under one man's long shadow now finds that shadow thinning, though not yet gone. In Belgrade and across Serbia, the Student List's victory on October 25 has opened a space where the old machinery of loyalty and patronage cracks under public pressure, and where a population wounded by the Novi Sad railway collapse is asking whether accountability can finally arrive. Yet the people who held power still hold keys to courts, administration and documents, so the question of the moment is less who won than how much the losers can still shape what comes next.
Serbia After Vučić: Election Winners Grow Impatient as Old Power Structures Linger
Sixteen people died in the Novi Sad railway station canopy collapse, which sparked the protest movement.
The winners are growing impatient; the losers still hold the levers.
Mark
The List won 53 to 39. Why is the mood already impatient?
Mimi
Because winning didn't move the levers. Parliament hasn't convened, and the SNS still holds sway in the judiciary and administration.
Mark
And the Novi Sad canopy is the root of it all?
Mimi
Sixteen people died. That collapse sparked the revolt, and people want accountability for it.
Luke
Careful, though. The source says the collapse is believed to stem from poor workmanship and corruption. That's not a finding stated as settled.
Mark
What about Vučić's claim of "revolutionary terror"?
Mimi
He points to the RTS director's resignation and the Informer invasion. The invasion was by a small group of protesters.
Luke
Right, and the article doesn't say who organized it or whether the List was involved. His characterization is his own.
Mark
Can the old guard actually do damage?
Mimi
Minić says officials can still award contracts and create obligations without necessarily breaking the law.
Luke
That's one watchdog's warning, not a documented case. Same for document destruction: the List asked whistleblowers to watch for it, but no destruction is reported.
Mark
What should we watch?
Mimi
The November 1 repeat vote at about 50 stations, then parliament convening.
Luke
And the cabinet names, still undisclosed. Energy policy is also openly unclear.
Le Pouls
- The Student List's 53 percent victory has left Vučić's SNS at 39 percent, and the party's grip is visibly loosening by the day.
- Pro-Vučić broadcaster RTS has fired its general director and senior editors, while protesters have stormed Informer TV's studios.
- Investigators are probing electoral fraud and the Belgrade prosecutor's office, but SNS officials still control many levers of administration.
- Whistleblowers are being urged forward as fears grow that documents may be destroyed, and the new parliament has yet to convene.
- A repeat vote at about 50 polling stations on November 1 stands between the List and the formal start of its mandate.
A country that spent years under one man's long shadow now finds that shadow thinning, though not yet gone. In Belgrade and across Serbia, the Student List's victory on October 25 has opened a space where the old machinery of loyalty and patronage cracks under public pressure, and where a population wounded by the Novi Sad railway collapse is asking whether accountability can finally arrive. Yet the people who held power still hold keys to courts, administration and documents, so the question of the moment is less who won than how much the losers can still shape what comes next.
Aleksandar Vučić once dominated every evening news bulletin, his outbursts on social media setting the agenda for loyal media. After losing the October 25 election to the Student List, he addressed reporters in a room with fewer microphones than before, accusing the winners of "revolutionary terror" and warning that his supporters might have to organize themselves if beatings and destruction went unanswered.
The terror he describes includes the swift resignation of the head of state broadcaster RTS and the dismissal of several senior editors. Protesters have also entered the studios of Informer TV, a station that for years drew thousands of complaints for demonizing critics and that journalists' groups now want stripped of its license. Other pro-government tabloids have quietly softened their language, no longer branding the List as terrorists or mercenaries.
The List, built from the student revolt and made up of professors, activists and artists, has moved quickly. Citizens have peacefully removed Vučić's portraits from municipal buildings. Organized crime prosecutors have opened investigations, including into electoral fraud, and a special commission is examining the Belgrade prosecutor's office, accused of serving Vučić and persecuting opponents.
Behind all of this lies the Novi Sad railway station canopy, which collapsed two years ago and killed sixteen people. The disaster is believed to have stemmed from shoddy work and corruption in the renovation contract, and it became the spark for a movement that has now reshaped the political map.
The celebrations have given way to impatience. Parliament is not yet convened and the old party still holds many levers. A Belgrade scholar observes that a society long ruled like a feudal estate naturally expects justice, and that the vacuum is unsettling people. The outgoing side insists it will return quickly once the new government has failed.
The open question is how much damage the departing officials can still do. Transparency Serbia expects resignations and quiet cooperation with the next government, while warning that contracts and obligations can still be created in the meantime. The List reportedly has allies inside police and administration, and it has demanded the resignation of senior police and judicial figures and called on whistleblowers to act if documents start disappearing. Its foreign policy aims for stability rather than rupture, keeping EU accession on track while avoiding sanctions on Russia and maintaining positions on Kosovo that most Serbs share. Final shape depends on the November 1 repeat vote and on the names of a government yet to be announced.
Aleksandar Vučić has spent years at the center of attention. Loyal media followed his movements, and his TikTok outbursts led the evening news. After he lost the October 25 election to the Student List, he held a press conference before fewer microphones than usual. He accused the winners of "revolutionary terror" and warned that if the state authorities did nothing about beatings and destruction, his side would be forced to organize itself.
What he calls terror includes the immediate resignation of the general director of the state broadcaster RTS and the dismissal of several senior RTS editors. On Monday, a small group of protesters also invaded the studios of Informer TV. Over the years, thousands of complaints were filed against the station for demonizing critics of Vučić, and journalists' associations are now calling for its license to be revoked. Other pro-Vučić tabloids have already softened their tone. Unlike Informer, they no longer call the Student List "terrorists" and "mercenaries."
The List grew out of the student revolt and is made up of professors, activists and artists. It took 53% of the vote, against 39% for Vučić's Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). Things have moved quickly since. In many cities, citizens peacefully took down portraits of Vučić from municipal buildings. The public prosecutor's office for organized crime has opened investigations, including one into electoral fraud. A special commission is examining the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade, which critics say did Vučić's bidding and persecuted his opponents.
The accusations against him are long-standing: that he and his system kept the media under tight control, that state contracts went only to companies loyal to the regime, and that he, his party and the state had ties to organized crime. The revolt itself began with a catastrophe two years ago, when the concrete canopy of the newly renovated railway station in Novi Sad collapsed and killed sixteen people. The accident is believed to have resulted from poor workmanship and corruption in awarding and carrying out the renovation contract.
Those who celebrated in the streets days ago are already impatient. The new parliament has not been convened, and the SNS still holds many levers of power. Dejan Bursać of the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory at Belgrade University told DW that a society oppressed for so long by a party acting like a feudal lord understandably expects justice. He said the power vacuum is making people restless. He also criticized the SNS for behaving as if it had lost a local election in Scandinavia rather than being part of a deeply corrupt and criminal regime. Vučić and other leading officials say they will be a strong opposition and expect a quick comeback once "this lot" have ruined the country.
The central question is how much damage the outgoing side can do. Switching camps is common in Serbian politics, and even Vučić has admitted that former comrades are turning away. Zlatko Minić of Transparency Serbia expects resignations, officials lying low, and some even offering themselves as informants to the next government. He warned there is still time for officials to award contracts and create financial obligations for their agencies without necessarily committing a crime. Still, people familiar with the situation say the List has for some time had contacts with police and administration officials opposed to Vučić's style, which may let it block certain actions. On Wednesday it again demanded resignations of leading police and judicial officials, and asked whistleblowers to come forward if the outgoing government tries to destroy documents.
The List held its first press conference in Pioneers Park, in front of the parliament building. Vučić's followers fenced it off in 2025 and turned it into a pro-government encampment, which investigative journalists say also became a base for thugs and criminals who attacked anti-government demonstrators. The morning after the election, supporters of the List went there with binbags and cleaned it up.
In foreign policy, little is expected to change. The List unites left and right, pro-European and pro-Russian forces. It wants to advance EU accession talks through real reforms, and it opposes sanctions on Russia and recognition of Kosovo, positions most Serbs share. Oliver Toskovic, a psychology professor and future MP, said the aim is stabilization, not an abrupt change of course. He called energy dependence on Russia a mistake of the previous government but said sanctions now would destabilize the country. How energy policy will develop remains unclear. The List's lead candidate, Ilija Srdanović, has said it is open to dialogue with Pristina and has already spoken by phone with Croatia's prime minister.
The electoral process is not finished. On Sunday, November 1, voting will be repeated at some 50 polling stations because of irregularities. Once those votes are counted, parliament can convene. A government is expected to form quickly, but the names of its prospective members have not been disclosed.
Citations marquantes
We are going to see cases of people resigning or staying in the shadows, even putting themselves forward as informants for the next government.— Zlatko Minić, Transparency Serbia
Our plan is to stabilize and develop the country, not to destabilize it with some abrupt change of course on foreign policy.— Oliver Toskovic, future Student List MP
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur Deutsche Welle ↗
Politics & Governance