Serbia’s student-led Student List has won a historic parliamentary victory, threatening to end the Serbian Progressive Party’s (SNS) 14-year dominance and opening a new chapter in the country’s politics. Preliminary projections following the snap election on October 25, 2026, put the Student List on course to secure around 139 to 140 seats in the 250-member National Assembly, while the SNS-led United Serbia coalition is projected to win about 103 to 104 seats. The figures give the student-backed movement a clear parliamentary majority, although the final allocation of seats remains subject to official results.
The result marks a major setback for Aleksandar Vucic, whose political movement has shaped Serbia’s government and parliamentary life since the SNS came to power in 2012. For more than a decade, the party built a dominant position across national and local politics, while Vucic became the central figure in the country’s political system. Traditional opposition parties repeatedly struggled to challenge that dominance at the ballot box.
This time, the decisive challenge came from a student-led movement that grew out of protests and demands for greater accountability. Its success represents a sharp change in Serbia’s political landscape: a movement that emerged outside the established party system has now secured enough support to potentially govern without a coalition partner.
The victory also carries the weight of a wider public rejection of the existing political order. The student movement brought together people dissatisfied with different aspects of government, including concerns about corruption, institutional accountability, the rule of law and the concentration of political power. The movement’s support does not necessarily mean that all its voters share the same political priorities, but the result shows that it has built a coalition broad enough to defeat the established ruling bloc.
The protests gained momentum after 16 people died when a concrete canopy collapsed at the railway station in Novi Sad in November 2024. The tragedy prompted demands for transparency and accountability, which developed into a broader challenge to the government. The election has now given that protest movement an opportunity to pursue its demands through parliament and the institutions of state.
The scale of the result has also exposed the weakness of Serbia’s traditional opposition parties. Many established political groups appear unlikely to secure representation under the standard three-per-cent electoral threshold, while the student-backed list and the SNS-led coalition dominate the projected parliamentary balance. Minority parties are expected to hold the remaining seats.
That shift could reshape parliamentary debate. The new legislature is likely to be dominated by two opposing political camps, with the Student List holding the numbers needed to form a government alone. Yet the disappearance or reduced representation of smaller parties also raises questions about how effectively different political interests will be represented in the new parliament.
Ethnic minority representation offers another indication of the changes under way. The Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians, a long-standing partner of the SNS, is projected to win three seats. The Albanian coalition is expected to secure two, while the Rasim Ljajic-led list and the SDA Sandzak are each projected to win one seat, according to preliminary projections.
These results point to a smaller role for some of the parties that previously helped sustain the ruling bloc. However, parliamentary seat totals alone cannot establish how every ethnic or regional community voted. Any conclusion that minority voters have broadly abandoned their traditional political alliances would require more detailed voting data.
The election has also drawn attention beyond Serbia’s borders. European Council President Antonio Costa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos were among the senior European figures reported to have congratulated the Student List on its victory. Their reactions place the result in the context of Serbia’s relationship with the European Union, particularly its long-running membership ambitions and concerns over democratic institutions, media freedom and the rule of law.
Hungary’s political shift adds another regional dimension. Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar also congratulated the student-backed movement, according to reports from Serbian public broadcaster RTS. Hungary under former prime minister Viktor Orban had maintained close political relations with Vucic’s government, making the change in leadership in both countries significant for the region’s political relationships. However, the Serbian election result alone does not establish how relations between Belgrade and Budapest will develop.
Vucic has also raised concerns about the possible economic and foreign-policy consequences of the result. He predicted that a new government could introduce sanctions against Russia, a move that would mark a significant shift for Serbia, which has maintained ties with Moscow while pursuing closer integration with the European Union. This remains Vucic’s prediction, not an announced policy of the incoming government.
The outgoing leadership has also warned that the election could unsettle investors. Foreign investment has been an important part of Serbia’s economic strategy, and a change of government may prompt businesses to examine the country’s future regulatory, economic and foreign-policy direction. But a change in political leadership does not automatically mean economic instability. The new administration’s decisions, its handling of the transition and its approach to public finances and investment will help determine how businesses respond.
For the Student List, the immediate challenge is to turn electoral success into an effective government. The movement brings together people from outside the traditional political establishment, but it will now need to establish a governing structure, agree on priorities and demonstrate that it can manage the responsibilities of national leadership.
Dejan Soskic, a professor at the Faculty of Economics and one of the prominent figures associated with the movement, described the result as an opportunity for Serbia to become a democratic and free society again. His comments reflect the hopes of supporters who see the election as a chance to rebuild public institutions and strengthen accountability.
Radomir Sajcic, an academic associated with the Student List, also stressed the work ahead after the victory was declared. He said citizens had demonstrated courage and a desire for change, adding that “serious work and the building of a new Serbia begin tomorrow.”
The movement will now face decisions on economic policy, relations with the European Union, ties with Russia, social policy and the rule of law. Its ability to maintain unity while turning broad demands for change into practical policies will be an important test of its political strength.
For the SNS, the result brings a different challenge. After years at the centre of government, the party will have to prepare for opposition and operate without the same level of control over the executive branch. The defeat also raises questions about its future leadership and whether it can rebuild support outside the political structures it developed during its long period in power.
The result is therefore more than a change in parliamentary numbers. It is a decisive setback for the political order associated with Vucic and a rare victory for a movement that grew from student protests into a national electoral force. Whether that victory leads to lasting institutional reform will depend on what the incoming political leadership does next.
