Belgrade woke to a political earthquake on Monday morning. Serbia's longtime conservative leader Aleksandar Vučić conceded defeat in a parliamentary election that saw his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) lose ground to a left-leaning, student-backed coalition called Student List. The result, while not yet final, hands the student movement a clear mandate, with projections giving it at least 135 seats in the 250-seat parliament, against around 105 for the SNS.
In a televised address, Vučić, who has dominated Serbian politics for over a decade as prime minister and then president, acknowledged the scale of the loss. “It is clear that we have lost the election,” he said, a statement that resonated far beyond the country's borders. The vote was widely seen as a referendum on his rule, which has been marked by accusations of authoritarian drift, corruption, and a balancing act between the European Union, Russia, and China.
A new political elite
Bojan Vranic, a professor of political science at the University of Belgrade, described the outcome as “historic” for Serbia. “This brings in a new, fresh political elite,” he told Europe Today, adding that the student-led movement represents a break from the entrenched political class that has governed the country since the 1990s. The Student List, which emerged from months of protests triggered by corruption scandals and a deadly railway station collapse in Novi Sad, has tapped into deep public frustration with the status quo.
Yet Vranic cautioned against expecting a rapid shift in Serbia's European integration path, which has been stalled for 14 years. “The Student List is very conservative when it comes to inching Belgrade closer to the bloc,” he said, noting that the movement's focus is on internal reforms rather than foreign policy alignment. “I would not be overly enthusiastic about a miracle breakthrough in European integration,” he added.
The election result is a blow to Vučić's carefully cultivated image as an indispensable leader, and it raises questions about the future of Serbia's relations with both the EU and its traditional partners in Moscow and Beijing. The student movement has promised to tackle corruption, strengthen the rule of law, and restore public trust in institutions—a tall order for a country grappling with economic stagnation and brain drain.
Meanwhile, in France, far-right leader Marine Le Pen officially launched her fourth presidential bid on Sunday, at a rally in Orléans attended by thousands of National Rally supporters. In a fiery speech, she promised to protect public spaces “so that they can remain places full of life and mutual respect,” a thinly veiled reference to the violent protests that have rocked French cities in recent weeks. Le Pen criticized President Emmanuel Macron's handling of the unrest, arguing that under his presidency the rule of law has become “too lenient.” She also vowed that France “will not send” its young people “to die in reckless or irresponsible military adventures, and even less in wars that are not ours,” a stance that will unsettle EU leaders and Kyiv alike.
Across the Mediterranean, Israel heads to the polls on Tuesday in what former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the country's most important vote in recent history. Speaking on Europe Today, Olmert, a vocal critic of incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu, said the election will be a referendum on the far-right leader's conduct during the war that followed the 7 October Hamas attack. The vote comes as the Israeli Defence Force continues operations in the occupied West Bank, displacing hundreds of Palestinians.
In Brussels, the European Commission is preparing to propose a major overhaul of Frontex, the EU's border agency. According to an EU official speaking on condition of anonymity, the reform will include a larger deployable pool of border guards and a “quick response force” to handle sudden migrant surges. The plan also includes an online surveillance unit to monitor social media and anticipate large-scale movements, a response to crises like the 80,000 migrants who entered Spain's Ceuta enclave from Morocco in July, which triggered a political firestorm.
The EU's relationship with Canada will also be in focus this week, as leaders gather in Montreal for a summit. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel with ten commissioners, but the summit's declaration is at risk of being watered down over the concept of “associate membership,” which some member states find unclear. The summit also offers an opportunity to press Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to increase financial support for Ukraine, as the EU struggles to cover Kyiv's estimated €70 billion shortfall for next year. Internal documents suggest the EU is currently providing 80% of Ukraine's military and financial aid, a burden that Brussels wants to share more equitably with allies like Canada.
For Serbia, the coming weeks will be crucial as the Student List works to form a government and translate its electoral victory into tangible change. The movement's leaders have promised to break with the past, but they face a formidable task: rebuilding a political system that many Serbs see as captured by oligarchs and party loyalists. As one Belgrade analyst put it, “The students have won the battle, but the war for Serbia's future has just begun.”
