Voter turnout in Serbia rises as students challenge longtime leader DPA. By 1 p.m., 41.1% of eligible voters had cast their ballots, compared to 26.6% at the same stage in the previous parliamentary election in December 2023, according to independent election monitoring group CRTA. Some 6.4 million Serbs have the right to elect 250 members of parliament, and opinion polls point to a close fight between Vučić's ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and the opposition list formed by the student movement. The results of the vote are widely seen as a test of whether Vucic, 56, can maintain his grip on Serbian politics, where he has dominated various positions since 2012, or whether the Balkan country will follow a more democratic path. Critics accuse him of corruption, opposition to democratic principles and ties to organized crime. The student movement is running a campaign under the slogan "Serbia or the mafia" and vowed to restore the rule of law, strengthen democratic institutions and attack corruption. The elections come amid widespread accusations of voter intimidation and irregularities in the election process. CRTA reported numerous cases of voter bribery and voter suppression. According to the organization, observers recorded voters taking pictures of their ballots in 25% of polling stations across the country and in half of the polling stations in Belgrade. Such practices may raise concerns about whether voters are being pressured to provide evidence of how they voted. Experts have warned that an extraordinary turnout does not necessarily indicate which side is winning, as numbers alone are not enough to show how successfully the rival camps have mobilized their supporters.

Voter turnout in Serbia rises as students challenge longtime leader DPA. By 1 p.m., 41.1% of eligible voters had cast their ballots, compared to 26.6% at the same stage in the previous parliamentary election in December 2023, according to independent election monitoring group CRTA. Some 6.4 million Serbs have the right to elect 250 members of parliament, and opinion polls point to a close fight between Vučić's ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and the opposition list formed by the student movement. The results of the vote are widely seen as a test of whether Vucic, 56, can maintain his grip on Serbian politics, where he has dominated various positions since 2012, or whether the Balkan country will follow a more democratic path. Critics accuse him of corruption, opposition to democratic principles and ties to organized crime. The student movement is running a campaign under the slogan "Serbia or the mafia" and vowed to restore the rule of law, strengthen democratic institutions and attack corruption. The elections come amid widespread accusations of voter intimidation and irregularities in the election process. CRTA reported numerous cases of voter bribery and voter suppression. According to the organization, observers recorded voters taking pictures of their ballots in 25% of polling stations across the country and in half of the polling stations in Belgrade. Such practices may raise concerns about whether voters are being pressured to provide evidence of how they voted. Experts have warned that an extraordinary turnout does not necessarily indicate which side is winning, as numbers alone are not enough to show how successfully the rival camps have mobilized their supporters.