Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia \u2013 Serbia\u2019s student movement has ended the\ndominance of long-serving leader Aleksandar Vu\u010di\u0107 and his party in the\nelection on Sunday (25 October 2026). The victory marks a major\nachievement for a protest movement that has held peaceful demonstrations\nover the past two years.<\/p>\n
But its real challenge is only beginning: governing, something\nneither the students nor their chosen candidates have done before.<\/p>\n
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Serbia to\ncelebrate after Vu\u010di\u0107 conceded defeat on Sunday night. The historic\nelection result also brought to a close two years of anti-government\nprotests.<\/p>\n
Amid celebrations marked by flares, fireworks, singing and dancing,\nquestions began to emerge. Who will become prime minister for a movement\nwithout a single leader?<\/p>\n
What policies will they pursue? And can figures relatively unknown in\npolitics work together to improve the economy, tackle corruption and\nmanage Serbia\u2019s complex foreign relations?<\/p>\n
The answers will determine political stability in Serbia, the largest\neconomy in the Western Balkans, as well as the course of its relations\nwith China, Russia and the European Union (EU), its biggest trading\npartner.<\/p>\n
In a report on Monday, Teneo Global Research said the students\u2019\nvictory could prompt major changes to state institutions and policy,\nparticularly in tackling corruption, upholding the rule of law and\nimproving public services.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, bureaucratic resistance to reform and the movement\u2019s\nlimited experience in government could make the transition difficult,\u201d\nTeneo wrote.<\/p>\n
Several names emerge<\/strong><\/p>\n The student protest movement began after 16 people were killed when a\ncanopy at a railway station in Novi Sad, northern Serbia, collapsed in\n2024. Since then, student-led demonstrations have demanded\naccountability for the tragedy and called for action against\ncorruption.<\/p>\n Although it has no single central figure, the movement has won broad\npublic support. It then selected 250 people from a range of backgrounds,\nincluding academics, lawyers, doctors, actors, farmers and musicians, to\nrepresent it in the election.<\/p>\n The student movement and several of its leading candidates have\noutlined the agenda they want to pursue. One of their main priorities is\nto tackle corruption by reforming state institutions.<\/p>\n They do not recognise Kosovo, a former Serbian province in the south\nthat declared independence in 2008. Nevertheless, the movement wants to\nhold a referendum on Serbia\u2019s EU membership, amid worsening relations\nbetween the two sides in recent years.<\/p>\n Prominent figures in the movement include cardiologist Ilija\nSrdanovi\u0107, who heads the student candidates\u2019 list; former central bank\ngovernor Dejan \u0160o\u0161ki\u0107; and Radomir \u0160aj\u010di\u0107, a professor at the University\nof Belgrade who spoke on behalf of the students after their victory.<\/p>\n It remains unclear whether these figures will take up ministerial\nposts. Another challenge will be to build a cohesive government, agree\non policy priorities and maintain co-operation so that the movement can\nuse its parliamentary majority to carry out reforms.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have witnessed a major change in Serbia\u2019s political culture\nbrought about by the student movement. Now we have to see whether that\nchange will last,\u201d said Katarina Popovi\u0107, also a professor at the\nUniversity of Belgrade, according to Reuters.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can only hope there are major goals that will keep them together\nlong enough to dismantle the existing system,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Reforming state institutions<\/strong><\/p>\n Under Serbia\u2019s constitution, candidates from the student movement\nhave 90 days to form a government after parliament convenes following\nthe announcement of the final results by the country\u2019s election\ncommission.<\/p>\n Time is a critical factor, particularly because the government must\npass a budget before the end of the year, as public and private debt\nlevels continue to rise. Meanwhile, tackling corruption will require a\nsweeping overhaul of the police, intelligence services and judicial\nsystem.<\/p>\n Belgrade-based lawyer and former deputy interior minister Bo\u017eo\nPrelevi\u0107 said state institutions needed to undergo a process of\n\u201cdetoxification\u201d after 14 years of Vu\u010di\u0107\u2019s rule.<\/p>\n He also warned that Vu\u010di\u0107\u2019s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) would be\na powerful opposition force. The new government must therefore be\nprepared for political resistance as it pursues its reform agenda.<\/p>\n Vu\u010di\u0107 and the SNS have repeatedly denied allegations of repression\nand corruption.<\/p>\n Relations with Russia, China and the EU<\/strong><\/p>\n The change of government in Serbia will also be watched by countries\nwith strategic interests in the region.<\/p>\n Russia, Serbia\u2019s traditional ally and main natural gas supplier, is\nmonitoring the political developments. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov\npraised Vu\u010di\u0107 but did not directly congratulate the student\nmovement.<\/p>\n Jovo Baki\u0107, a sociologist and university lecturer representing the\nstudent candidates\u2019 list, said relations with Moscow would not change.\nIn an interview with the Russian-owned RT Balkan, he said: \u201cWe respect\nRussia as a great country and an historically important partner, and in\nmany ways as our protector.\u201d<\/p>\n Baki\u0107 added that Serbia would not change its foreign policy towards\nRussia, including by imposing sanctions on Moscow.<\/p>\n Ukraine is also following developments. It has indirectly benefited\nfrom Serbian arms supplies in its effort to repel Russia\u2019s invasion, now\nin its fourth year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, several European officials congratulated the student\nmovement and said they were ready to help Serbia tackle corruption.<\/p>\n Savo Manojlovi\u0107 of the Move-Change movement, which supports the\nstudents, said he was confident the group would be able to choose the\nright person to lead the government.<\/p>\n \u201cI am confident that the Student List will find a way, as it has so\nfar, to choose someone capable of governing. That person will have the\nhonour, but also bear the enormous responsibility, of leading Serbia\nthrough these reforms,\u201d Manojlovi\u0107 said.<\/p>",
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