Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic walks past guards of honour during a welcoming ceremony prior to a meeting with Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili in Tbilisi, Georgia, Jun 15, 2026. (Photo: REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze)
28 Jun 2026 05:00AM
BELGRADE: Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Saturday (Jun 27) he would resign within weeks and the country will hold early presidential and parliamentary elections, following 18 months of anti-government protests.The announcement by Vucic, who has been in power as president or prime minister for 12 years, came amid persistent anti-corruption demonstrations led by students and triggered by the collapse of an awning at a railway station in the northern city of Novi Sad in November 2024, in which 16 people died.Protesters, opposition and rights groups allege the railway station disaster was a sign of broader government mismanagement of construction projects and corruption."I will be president for only a couple more weeks, and then I will resign," Vucic told throngs of his supporters at a pro-government rally in the capital, Belgrade. Vucic's second and final mandate was due to expire in mid-2027.
Vucic said he would help his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) win the presidential election and the early parliamentary vote, also originally set for 2027."My proposal is for our list, the winning list in the upcoming elections, to be named 'United Serbia'."He did not specify when he would resign nor when he would dissolve parliament, a precondition for early parliamentary elections.
