Serbia’s ruling populists claimed victory in municipal elections in dozens of cities and towns on Sunday, including a rerun vote in Belgrade. The right-wing Serbian Progressive Party declared victory, with Prime Minister Milos Vucevic stating that the victory was “pure and convincing.” However, opposition officials raised concerns about major irregularities in the election, including incidents and skirmishes in Belgrade and Novi Sad. Election observers reported suspected organized voting, vote-buying, and violations of vote secrecy, prompting criminal complaints.
The municipal elections in Belgrade were a rerun following reports of widespread irregularities in December, leading to political tensions and accusations of electoral fraud. In addition to Belgrade, elections were held in other key cities such as Novi Sad and Nis. A newcomer in the election race, Savo Manojlovic, acknowledged a good result in Belgrade but criticized the election conditions in the country. Dobrica Veselinovic, a mayoral candidate for Belgrade, described the election as marred by violence, attacks, abuse, organized voting, and crime, accusing the governing party of maintaining power through such tactics.
The Serbian Progressive Party denied allegations of electoral misconduct and instead accused opposition groups of attacking party activists and call centers. Opposition parties claimed that the call centers operated unlawfully and served to bribe and blackmail voters. The ruling party, led by President Aleksandar Vucic, has maintained power in Serbia for more than a decade and went into the election as the favorite. The opposition, divided over participating in the ballot or demanding free and fair elections, struggled to unite against the ruling party.
President Vucic has sought to have Serbia join the European Union while maintaining close ties with Russia and China, leading to accusations from pro-Western opposition groups of crime links, corruption, and a crackdown on democracy. The opposition split contributed to voter apathy among Serbia’s 6.5 million voters, further weakening their chances of success in the election. International election observers criticized the December election, including a parliamentary vote, for being held in unjust conditions due to the president’s involvement and advantages for the ruling party. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s report cited harsh rhetoric, media bias, pressure on public sector employees, and misuse of public resources.
