Serbian opposition student movement holds massive election rally in Belgrade

About 150,000 supporters of an opposition student movement gathered in central Belgrade on Thursday ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for Sunday, the Guardian reported. The Student List movement hopes to defeat the rightwing populist Serbian Progressive party, according to the Guardian. Civil society groups noted that the campaign has been marred by intimidation, the Guardian said. [1]

The leaderless Student List movement seeks to end more than 14 years of rule by the Serbian Progressive party led by veteran politician Aleksandar Vucic, the Guardian reported. However, as FTMQ News reported earlier, Vucic has been in power for 12 years and recently launched a campaign for prime minister ahead of the October 25 vote after resigning as president on September 27. [1][6][7]

The current political movement follows widespread demonstrations across the country. In November 2024, mass protests began in Novi Sad after a railway station canopy collapsed, killing 16 people. By March 2025, student-led protests calling for accountability had spread to 400 cities and towns across Serbia. [4][6]

The parliamentary vote on Sunday comes after early elections were called in September 2026, moving the election forward from its original December 2027 date, as FTMQ News reported earlier. [7]