On a Sunday, in a televised address, Serbia's long-dominant president Aleksandar Vucic admitted what he had not needed to say in over a decade: that he had lost. The student-backed Student List, born from nearly two years of protest after a railway canopy collapse in Novi Sad killed sixteen people, now holds the parliamentary majority in a country that has been reshaping its sense of itself since independence in 2006. Its arrival at power is one thread in a wider pattern of young people across Europe and beyond, stirred by anger over corruption, unfinished promises and the price of ordinary li
Vucic Concedes as Serbia's Student List Wins Parliamentary Election, Ending Decade of Dominance
Sixteen people died in a railway station canopy collapse in Novi Sad in 2024, which sparked the protest movement.
Whether the energy of the streets can become effective governance
Mark
Vucic dominated Serbia since 2014. Why does this concession matter so much?
Mimi
Because it's a sitting leader saying on television that he lost. He said the Student List won, and tens of thousands celebrated in Belgrade.
Luke
Worth noting the seat numbers, 135 to 140 versus 105, came from Vucic himself, and the results are preliminary.
Mark
And where did the movement come from?
Mimi
From the 2024 canopy collapse at the Novi Sad railway station that killed 16 people. Nearly two years of protests followed, demanding accountability and action on corruption.
Mark
The article links this to protests in France, Italy, Albania and India. Is it one wave?
Luke
The reporting says no. It states plainly that these movements don't share leadership or a programme. The demands differ, from housing to exam security.
Mimi
What they share is young people pressing governments, and in India that produced Pradhan's resignation on July 25.
Mark
So what's the open question in Serbia?
Luke
Quite a lot. Who leads the next government isn't answered, and neither is how the agenda gets implemented or how it handles China, Russia and the EU.
Il Polso
- Vucic, who has steered Serbian politics since 2014, conceded defeat on live television as preliminary results handed the Student List a commanding win.
- Tens of thousands poured into the streets of Belgrade, turning a election night into a national celebration after months of tense demonstrations.
- The movement must now translate street fury over the Novi Sad tragedy into a working government, with 135 to 140 seats of 250 in play and open questions about who leads.
- Pressure is mounting on the new majority to deliver on anti-corruption, rule-of-law and education promises while balancing ties with China, Russia and the European Union.
- Youth mobilisation rippling through France, Italy, Albania, India and beyond keeps the stakes high, and Serbia's first governing moves will show whether the energy can hold.
On a Sunday, in a televised address, Serbia's long-dominant president Aleksandar Vucic admitted what he had not needed to say in over a decade: that he had lost. The student-backed Student List, born from nearly two years of protest after a railway canopy collapse in Novi Sad killed sixteen people, now holds the parliamentary majority in a country that has been reshaping its sense of itself since independence in 2006. Its arrival at power is one thread in a wider pattern of young people across Europe and beyond, stirred by anger over corruption, unfinished promises and the price of ordinary life, and it raises the older human question of whether indignation can become the patient work of government.
On Sunday, Aleksandar Vucic said in a televised address that he had lost. For more than a decade he had been the central figure in Serbian politics, first as prime minister and then as president, and now preliminary results gave the student-backed Student List a clear win in the parliamentary election. Tens of thousands gathered in Belgrade to celebrate.
The movement grew out of nearly two years of protest that began after sixteen people died when a canopy collapsed at a railway station in Novi Sad in 2024. Those demonstrations were driven by a demand for accountability, a fight against corruption and a wish to change the political system itself. The Student List fielded 250 candidates, including academics, actors and farmers, under the leadership of Ilija Srdanovic. Its priorities are corruption, the rule of law and education.
The harder work begins now. Nobody has yet settled who will lead the next government or how the movement will turn its agenda into policy, and it must also manage relations with China, Russia and the European Union.
Serbia's result comes as young people elsewhere are also in motion. In France, Italy, Albania, Germany, Austria, Greece and India, students and younger citizens have taken to the streets over education, housing, corruption and exam fraud. Their demands differ, and nothing shows they share a leadership or program. Serbia's test is whether that street energy can become the capacity to govern.
On Sunday, in a televised address, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said what he had not had to say in more than a decade: that he had lost. "It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won," he said, after preliminary results pointed to a win for the student-backed movement in the parliamentary election.
The announcement sent tens of thousands of people into the streets of Belgrade to celebrate. By Vucic's own account, the student-backed candidates were expected to take between 135 and 140 seats in the 250-member parliament, while his Serbian Progressive Party would secure 105. Vucic has dominated Serbian politics since 2014, as either prime minister or president, so the result is a major setback.
The movement behind the vote grew out of nearly two years of protests. They began after 16 people died when a canopy collapsed at a railway station in Novi Sad in 2024. The demonstrations that followed were driven by demands for accountability, action against corruption and changes to the political system. Serbia, a landlocked Balkan country of about 6.6 million people, became independent in 2006 after separating from Montenegro; before that it had been part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, renamed Serbia and Montenegro in 2003.
The Student List fielded 250 candidates, among them academics, actors and farmers, and is led by Ilija Srdanovic. Its stated priorities are tackling corruption, strengthening the rule of law and improving education. Questions remain about who will lead the next government and how the movement will carry out its agenda. It will also have to manage Serbia's relationships with China, Russia and the European Union.
Serbia's result arrives amid student mobilisation elsewhere. In France, protests gained momentum on September 21 after pupils at Lycee Saint-Exupery in Creteil demonstrated against teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms and decaying school buildings. Trade unions and people hit by inflation later joined. On October 17 and the following weekend, about 5.5 lakh people took part in 110 demonstrations, according to Interior Minister Laurent Nunez; organisers put the figure at eight lakh. Violence broke out in Paris, Marseille, Limoges and other cities, and the Associated Press reported around 400 arrests.
Italy saw student demonstrations on October 16 and October 24 over education funding, military spending and government policy, including opposition to a proposed cap on foreign pupils in some classrooms. In Milan, masked protesters threw stones at police and set barricades on fire. In Albania, thousands of young people gathered outside the Education Ministry in Tirana on October 17 demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama's resignation, after months of anger over corruption, unemployment and a coastal development linked to Jared Kushner. Reuters reported that police used tear gas, stun grenades and water cannon after protesters threw stones. Smaller student actions took place in Germany, over preparations for compulsory military service and education spending; in Austria, over university budget cuts; and in Greece, over housing and accommodation costs.
In India, the leak of the NEET-UG medical entrance paper in 2026 set off a youth-led protest movement. The exam was cancelled, leaving around two million candidates facing a retest. The protests were led by the Cockroach Janta Party, which began online and became a national campaign. Students gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi and in other cities, demanding Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation, tougher action on paper leaks, exam reform and aid for families of students who died by suicide. On July 20, police used tear gas and batons on thousands trying to march on Parliament. Despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promise of fast-track courts for exam fraud, protests continued, and Pradhan resigned on July 25.
The source is careful on one point: nothing in Serbia's result shows that these movements share leadership or a programme. Their demands range from education and housing to corruption and accountability. What Serbia offers is a test of whether street energy can be turned into governing capacity, and the first answers will come in how the Student List forms a government.
Citazioni salienti
It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won.— Aleksandar Vucic, televised address
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