Serbia votes on October 25: Vučić's SNS and the Student List are close in polls, first results two hours after 20:00
Ipsos puts the SNS at 47 and the students at 40 percent, but other polls show the students ahead.
Citizens of Serbia vote on October 25, 2026 in snap parliamentary elections called by Aleksandar Vučić in September. Polling stations are open from 7:00 to 20:00, and first results are expected about two hours after they close, according to Al Jazeera.
Who is competing? The main contestants are Vučić's Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), whose leader, according to the same report, resigned as president in September to run for prime minister, and the Student List, a movement whose roughly 250 candidates include university professors, actors and farmers. The Student List is led by cardiologist Ilija Srdanović.
What do the polls say? An Ipsos poll released on October 22 puts the SNS at 47 percent and the Student List at 40 percent. Other polls, according to Al Jazeera, show the students ahead. The race is described as tight, and the polls differ, so one cannot say with certainty who leads.
What are the main issues? The Student List focuses on corruption, the rule of law, institutions and education. Vučić campaigns on higher pensions and public-sector pay, health care investment and subsidies for young couples. Serbia's relations with the EU are strained over judicial reform, the rule of law and corruption.
Background: the protest movement began after the collapse of the canopy at the railway station in Novi Sad in 2024, in which 16 people died. According to the same report, about 150,000 supporters gathered in Belgrade on October 22. Rights groups and activists say repression has worsened, while Vučić and his party deny accusations of repression, corruption and spying on opponents. Vučić claims the students are funded by foreign agents from Croatia and Montenegro, which the students deny.
Why does it matter for North Macedonia? Serbia is a key neighbor and trading partner, and its political stability affects the region. The result will also show whether street movements can influence election outcomes, as is also happening in Albania.
What is not known? From the available report it is not clear how many voters are registered, what the electoral threshold is, or whether there are observers and what violations are reported. The result is not known, nor is how a government will be formed if neither list has a clear majority.
What does it mean? These are elections that will measure whether street pressure of the last two years can turn into votes. Until results are published, the safest way to read the polls is as an indicator, not a prediction.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · October 25, 2026
