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Ruling populists claim sweeping victory in Serbian parliamentary election

The right-wing Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), led by President Aleksandar Vucic, has emerged victorious in the parliamentary election, with exit polls indicating a win of 47 percent of the vote and an expected 130 seats in the 250-member assembly. This election, viewed as a referendum on Vucic’s government, was marred by reports of significant irregularities, such as organised arrivals of voters at polling stations, photo of ballots, and procedural errors.

The main opposition Serbia Against Violence (SPN) alliance, which sought to unseat the ruling populists, won about 23 percent of the vote, according to projections. While the official results are set to be announced on Monday, opposition parties and rights watchdogs have accused Vucic and the SNS of voter bribing, media freedom suppression, violence against opponents, corruption, and ties with organized crime.

The election, which occurred amid two mass shootings resulting in 18 deaths, including nine elementary school students in May, sparked protests and discontent against Vucic and the SNS’s decade-long grip on power. Inflation, which reached 8 percent in November, also intensified the public’s dissatisfaction. In the wake of these concerns, opponents accuse Vucic of treating the election as a referendum on his government, rather than focusing on the presidency.

During the election, the Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA) watchdog reported attacks on its election monitors in northern Serbia. Allegations of “vote buying” and “falsification of signatures” were made by opposition leader Radomir Lazovic, who described the electoral process as potentially the dirtiest.

Vucic, on the other hand, celebrated his party’s victory, calling it a demonstration of the SNS’s absolute majority in parliament. While rumours spread on social media regarding the government’s allowance of unregistered voters from neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina to cast illegal ballots, Prime Minister Ana Brnabic dismissed these claims, accusing them of inciting chaos. Despite these challenges and allegations, the SNS’s victory remains the central outcome of the parliamentary election.

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Photo credit www.aljazeera.com