The Showdown in Serbia's Local Elections: Who Really Came Out on Top?
Contentious Local Election in Serbia: Competing Factions Both Claim Triumph - Serbian local elections results in conflicting declarations of victory by the government and opposition parties
The latest round of local elections in Serbia has left spectators divided, with both the ruling bloc and opposition parties claiming a victory on the 8th of June, 2025.
In the 10,000-resident town of Kosjerić, the opposition Civic List Together for Kosjerić garnered 49.3 percent of the votes, but President Aleksandar Vucic remained adamant that the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) emerged victorious. Vucic boasted, "We won because the people chose the state, because the people said: 'You are not destroying Serbia,'" pointing his finger directly at the opposition. Voter turnout increased significantly from the previous election in 2021, just as Vucic claimed, rising to 84 percent from 73 percent.
Similarly, in the eastern town of Zajecar, with 40,000 residents, the SNS also clinched the win, receiving 48 percent of the votes, while the opposition list only managed 38 percent.
Despite Vucic's proclamations, opposition parties quickly countered, with the leading candidate of the Kosjerić opposition electoral list, Slavica Pantovic, declaring a victory before the official results were announced. "The victory has begun. May the whole of Serbia celebrate," Pantovic announced. Yet, the opposition's elation was short-lived as Pantovic later reaffirmed her certainty of the win and accused some polling stations of irregularities.
Election day saw rising tensions, with supporters of both the SNS and opposition mobilizing in Kosjerić. The police were called in to intervene several times to break up scuffles between the two sides, as the streets echoed with the chants of each group.
These local elections carry extra weight due to the widespread discontent with the government in Belgrade. The spark for the ongoing protests was the collapse of a railway canopy in Novi Sad in November 2024, which resulted in the deaths of 16 people. Although the initial focus of the protests was on the cause of the accident, they soon evolved into a broader condemnation of the SNS government and rampant corruption in the country, with calls for new elections becoming increasingly frequent.
Some critics have accused President Vucic of ascribing the protests to foreign meddling, although this assertion has been met with skepticism.
Enrichment Data:
- The protest wave in Belgrade: Ongoing protests against the SNS government, which have been supported by student organizations and various groups, are a significant part of the broader political context in Serbia [2].
- Political Crisis: While the recent opposition victories in local elections may indicate a shift in public sentiment, experts suggest that these results do not necessarily resolve the ongoing political crisis in Serbia, as broader national issues persist [3].
In respect to the local elections of 2022, the search results do not provide specific information; however, it is important to recognize that local elections in Serbia can offer valuable insights into public sentiment, the strength of opposition movements, and broader political trends.
The political atmosphere in Serbia, amidst local elections, was turbulent, with President Aleksandar Vucic and opposition leaders yielding contrasting claims of victory on the 8th of June, 2025. Despite this, the allegations of foreign meddling in the ongoing protests against the SNS government, a significant part of the broader political context in Serbia, remain contentious and skepticized.
Local elections in Serbia, such as the ones held in 2025, can provide significant insights into public sentiment, the strength of opposition movements, and broader political trends, although they may not directly resolve the ongoing political crisis in the country.
