Over 150,000 people from Serbia took to the streets in Belgrade on Thursday to support the student movement. This gathering is the last rally before a significant electoral challenge against Aleksandar Vučić, the country's populist leader.
Gathering in Central Belgrade
People poured into Central Belgrade from all directions, filling several blocks around it. An independent monitoring group estimated the number of participants to be around 150,000.
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The enthusiastic crowd came out chanting "Victory" ahead of the voting on Sunday, which follows two years of student protests against Vučić. These protests began after an incident at the Novi Sad railway station that resulted in the deaths of 16 people.
Anti-corruption movement and calls for early elections
The anti-corruption movement, led by university students, has expanded from demands for an independent investigation into the incident to calls for early elections. The student list, a leaderless movement of student-backed candidates, represents the biggest challenge to Vučić.
Marija Nedeljkovic Radik, a 47-year-old woman who came to support the student list, told the French news agency: "I came to support the student list because the youth have finally given me hope that I might live in a normal country." She added, "Really, for the first time in my life, I believe this is possible."
Yugoslav Gasić, one of the 250 candidates on the student list, told the crowd: "We are ending 14 years of humiliation, chaos, and betrayal, and decades of personal and party interests prevailing over your interests." The crowd responded: "Victory, victory!"
Vučić has dominated Serbian politics for over a decade, both as Prime Minister and President. Facing increasing pressure from protests, he announced early elections last month. He has resigned as President, but many believe this is a tactical move to allow him to run for Prime Minister.
This election is now considered the biggest electoral challenge for the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) since it came to power in 2012.
While several other smaller parties are also competing for the Prime Minister position, observers say the atmosphere between Vučić and the student movement resembles a referendum-like environment that could overshadow other parties in the 250-seat parliament.
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