Serbia’s students celebrate election victory after two years of protests

Serbia's students celebrate election victory after two years of protestsTrams and traffic halted by crowds. Tens of thousands of people choking the city’s main boulevards; the air thick with smoke; a man on a car waving a flare. Familiar-sounding scenes after a month of sometimes violent protests across European cities as students take to the streets calling for better education standards and better prospects. Except, on Sunday night in Serbia’s capital Belgrade, students were not protesting but celebrating an election victory after long-time ruler Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat to a student-backed list of candidates in parliamentary elections. It was the culmination of a two-year, peaceful protest movement that called for Vucic to step down and an end to what they said is rampant corruption in the Balkan country – a charge Vucic denies. The students’ win marks a profound political shift in the country of some 6 million people and shows what power younger generation have when they are able to harness widespread discontent. “That is the best thing that happened in my life. We will now breathe freely,” said Milica, a law student. Vucic had ruled as prime minister or president since 2014, and oversaw a period of strong economic growth, but he faced growing opposition from student-led protests after the collapse of a railway station awning killed 16 people in November 2024. Tomorrow, the disparate group of 250 student-backed candidates will have to turn towards ruling, but Sunday evening was a time to party. At their headquarters, the unknown candidates, many of them lawyers, professors, actors or farmers, hugged and cheered in near disbelief at what they had achieved. “The people have won! The people defeated a dictator! The people will lead Serbia!” said Nebojsa Cosic while waving a flag on the street.