Serbia elects new parliament: President Vucic wants to consolidate power

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By early afternoon, 32.4 percent of eligible voters had cast their votes, the election commission in Belgrade announced. That was 0.8 percentage points more than at the same time 17 months ago. At that time, early parliamentary elections were held along with regular presidential elections. Ultimately, turnout for the April 2022 elections was 59 percent.

About 6.5 million eligible voters were called on Sunday to elect the 250 members of the People’s Assembly (Skupstina). President Aleksandar Vucic’s right-wing national Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) was considered the clear favorite. According to recent opinion polls, she could get up to 45 percent of the vote. Together with its long-standing coalition partner, the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), led by Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, it is likely to remain the dominant force in the country.

According to this information, the SPS can expect nine percent of the votes. The liberal opposition alliance ‘Serbia against Violence’ would therefore have a vote share of 24 percent. One or two right-wing extremist parties could also enter parliament. Ethnic minority parties – Hungarians, Bosnians, Albanians, Croats – to whom the three percent threshold does not apply can also count on parliamentary representation.

Mass protest movement after school shootings

Vucic dissolved the last parliament after less than two years. The president, who has determined the country’s politics in various roles since 2012, has repeatedly used early elections to ensure the loyalty of his officials and supporters. Critics accuse him of an authoritarian style of government.

According to these voices, Vucic abuses the government apparatus, the police and the secret services to economically ruin and publicly discredit political competitors. At the same time, those in power around Vucic are collaborating with organized crime, critics claim. Physical attacks on opposition members are often carried out by criminals from this environment.

The early elections were mainly the result of two mass shootings in May that left 18 people dead, and conflicts in Kosovo, which has been independent since 2008. Serbia continues to claim its former province, now inhabited almost exclusively by Albanians, as its own.

The May shootings sparked a massive protest movement against the Vucic government. She accused the government and its media of promoting a climate of hatred and glorification of violence. As a result, the liberal opposition joined forces to form the electoral alliance ‘Serbia against Violence’. The politicians and supporters hope to capture the capital in local elections that will take place at the same time. The opposition believes that a victory in Belgrade and a better than normal national average result would herald the downfall of Vucic’s rule.

The Chamber of Deputies of the semi-autonomous northern province of Vojvodina and 65 of the country’s 197 municipal councils, including the one in Belgrade, were also elected on Sunday. Polling stations should close at 8:00 PM CET. The first results were expected late in the evening. (SDA)

Source: Blick