Serbia's student-led government faces 90-day deadline to form cabinet

Serbia enters a 90-day period to form a new government after the Student List won a parliamentary majority. The constitutional deadline requires the new cabinet to be established within 90 days of the new parliament convening. That parliament must assemble within 30 days of the official election results. The Student List secured 141 of the 250 seats in the assembly, representing 53% of the vote. This outcome ends the 14-year hold of Aleksandar Vučić and his Serbian Progressive party, which captured 39% of the vote and 103 seats.

The movement lacks a single designated leader or hierarchical structure. Decision-making relies on collective processes rather than a prime ministerial figurehead. Candidates for the list included academics, actors, farmers, and students. Prominent figures associated with the movement include Ilija Srdanović, a cardiologist who headed the candidate list; Dejan Šoškić, a former central bank governor; and Radomir Saičić, a chemistry professor at Belgrade University who represented the list after the victory. The group has not yet identified who will serve as prime minister or select cabinet members.

The Student List has outlined specific policy priorities to reverse the influence of the previous administration. The platform pledges to fight corruption and restore the rule of law. It proposes creating an independent police unit accountable to prosecutors rather than the interior ministry. The movement also aims to purge police officers linked to organized crime. Additionally, the list intends to ban party loyalists from appointments in state-owned companies. New independent bodies will oversee financial accountability for major state infrastructure contracts to prevent the misuse of public funds.

Ana Mirković, a university educationist and candidate, described the movement's first priority as the "social and psychological detoxification" of the country. She stated that the group views the election result as a "historic debt to our own people and to our own children." Mirković said the new government would dismantle a "system of intimidation" by "urgently opening up" the media and ending pressure on public-sector workers. The goal is to "rebuild society from the ground up" through full disclosure of contracts and depoliticization of the judiciary.

The political transition follows a two-year period of anti-government protests. These demonstrations were triggered by the collapse of a canopy at the Novi Sad railway station, which killed 16 people. Vučić conceded defeat late on Sunday. He blamed the loss on "the direct support of various European countries and the US deep state." In response, international leaders offered congratulations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the result a "new chapter in the history of the country." German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated Berlin would "actively support Serbia's European path."

The movement kept foreign policy issues, such as relations with the EU and Russia, in the background during the campaign. The Kremlin expressed hope on Monday that the new leaders "understand that cooperation with Russia is in Serbia's interests." Analyst Dušan Vučićević noted that the movement focused on dismantling domestic institutions from the national to the local level. He described the win as an "experiment in grassroots democracy" that secured more than 50% of the vote. However, he noted it remains unclear if this model would function in other countries.

Nikola Burazer, programme director at the Belgrade-based Centre for Contemporary Politics, observed that the movement's decision-making process needed to "be sped up." He pointed out that the candidate selection process "actually took a long time" over several months. Burazer said that after the initial celebration, attention would shift to the structure of the upcoming government. He noted that just 24 hours prior to the results, the formation of a student-led government "seemed like a fantasy."

Serbia must also hold new presidential elections before December 27. This requirement stems from Vučić stepping down to run for prime minister. The Student List faces public institutions staffed with civil servants loyal to the outgoing regime. This situation complicates the task of institutional overhaul. The movement's victory marks a political shift that could inspire other student movements across Europe. These groups have recently emerged demanding better education standards and prospects.