A sense of hope swept through Belgrade on Thursday evening as thousands gathered for the final rally of the Student List, the group of candidates put forward by the student movement that has been protesting against the government for almost exactly two years. The Student List is calling for an end to the current regime in Serbia via the ballot box in Sunday's parliamentary election. Many of those who attended the rally had spent days walking to the Serbian capital from all four corners of the country, turning the campaign finale into a display of solidarity and peaceful determination.
"We have walked across Serbia from one end to the other, visited villages and neighborhoods, looked you in the eye and realized that we can count on you," biology student Arsa Stojanovic told the crowd. "People, it smells like freedom," added Aleksandar Cupic, professor of transport and traffic engineering, and a candidate on the Student List. After 24 months of protests sparked by the collapse of a concrete canopy at Novi Sad railway station, which killed 16 people in November 2024, Serbia is heading into an election unlike any other in the 14 years since the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) first came to power.
For the first time in years, the ruling party faces a serious political challenge, which this time comes from a student movement that has channeled widespread public discontent into an electoral campaign. "These are the first elections since [Aleksandar] Vucic came to power in 2012 that are competitive and whose outcome is uncertain," political scientist Dusan Spasojevic told DW. "The student movement has generated hope among citizens and substantial support.
Polls suggest that they could even win more than 40% of the vote." The Student List has framed the election as a chance to confront corruption and demand accountability for a disaster that became a symbol of institutional failure. In doing so, the students have sought to put aside the ideological, social and foreign-policy divisions that have long shaped Serbian politics. Just a few kilometers away, also in Belgrade, the ruling SNS held its own final rally.
The message here was familiar: A vote for the SNS means stability, continuity and further prosperity, while a change of government would risk plunging the country into chaos. The party framed the election as a battle for Serbia's future and sovereignty, accusing its opponents of serving foreign interests. "They tried to destroy our country on foreign orders, and that is why this is the hardest battle," former President Aleksandar Vucic told his supporters.
"They attacked us with billions of euros, and we defended ourselves with integrity, our program, love for our homeland and Serbia's achievements." The campaign has increasingly been overshadowed by violence, reflecting a society in which political opponents are often portrayed not simply as rivals, but as enemies. By the final week of the campaign, CRTA, an independent election-monitoring organization, had recorded 116 incidents involving physical violence or verbal threats. The incidents included physical confrontations, attacks on campaigners and attempts to seize campaign banners.
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