Serbia a day after Vučić: RTS staff want new leadership, academics give rector 72 hours

A day after Aleksandar Vučić admitted defeat, Serbia did not wait for a new government. Employees of public broadcaster RTS are demanding the resignation of the entire leadership, academics in Novi Sad have given the rector 72 hours to resign, and a military analyst warns that security services may be destroying files in the meantime. The Students Win list has an independent majority in parliament, but has not yet said who will be prime minister. N1 (Reuters) ↗

We described the election result itself in the early summary. This text follows what began happening on Monday.

First reckonings: television and the university

A group of RTS employees calling itself Naš protest (Our Protest) is demanding the immediate dismissal of general director Manja Grčić and the resignation of the entire leadership, especially the news editors. "There will be enough material here for vetting, and we believe for criminal liability too," they wrote on Instagram. Similar calls also came from part of the staff of Radio Belgrade. Danas ↗

At Vojvodina's public broadcaster, one head has already rolled. RTV1 editor-in-chief Nenad Ćaćić resigned after talks between staff, unions and the general director. Nova ↗ Reforming RTS and depoliticizing the media regulator are among the eleven points of the program the Students Win list ran on in the election. N1 Bosna ↗

In Novi Sad, where the protests began after a canopy collapsed at the railway station in November 2024, representatives of the academic network Slobodan univerzitet (Free University) entered the rectorate building and hung their flag on it. According to them, rector Dejan Madić has 72 hours to resign. If he does not step down, professors will launch his removal, said Aleksandar Sedlar of the Faculty of Agriculture. N1 Srbija ↗

Security apparatus and files

Military analyst Aleksandar Radić says the new power must take control of the security system as soon as possible, because people involved in surveilling opponents could destroy documents usable as evidence. "Key hours have already been lost," he told the agency FoNet. According to him, the goal should not be revenge but the professionalization of institutions. Danas ↗

Radić is speaking from exile, and his case is itself part of the dispute. He left Serbia at the end of June, and the prosecution accuses him of spreading false claims about the use of a "sound cannon" at the protest on March 15, 2025. The court ordered detention and issued an arrest warrant, which is not in itself a final ruling on guilt. N1 Srbija ↗

The numbers left after the night

After counting 8,077 polling stations, the Republic Election Commission reports 52.54 percent for the Students Win list and 39.29 percent for Vučić's United Serbia, with turnout of 68.78 percent. HNonline (Tanjug) ↗ Seat numbers are still based on projections. The final projection by CeSID and Ipsos, based on a 100-percent sample, gives the students 141 of 250 seats and Vučić's list 103, with 126 seats needed for a majority. Danas ↗ The sample does not include diaspora votes, and according to CeSID these could still shift the distribution slightly. N1 Srbija ↗

Vučić also lost in his own polling station No. 140 in New Belgrade, where he voted with his wife. According to the minutes published by the election commission, his list received 221 votes there and the students 616. Danas ↗

He won decisively, by contrast, in prisons. In 28 polling stations in prison facilities he received 65.6 percent, the students just under 25. In Prokuplje, all 25 inmates who came to the ballot box voted for his list. N1 Srbija ↗ Among cities, he won only in Vranje and Leskovac, plus in Kosovo. Danas ↗

The moment Vučić admitted defeat at his headquarters on Sunday evening was captured by the Serbian portal Insajder (video in Serbian).

Who will govern

The Students Win list has no formal leader. The first name on it is cardiologist Ilija Srdanović; among others most frequently mentioned is former central bank governor Dejan Šoškić, who before the election spoke of a vetting law and checking the origin of assets. No one has yet announced a candidate for prime minister. N1 Bosna ↗

The keys to the transition are held by Vučić's party colleague Ana Brnabić. As speaker of the dissolved parliament, she convenes the first session of the new one, and as acting head of state after Vučić's September resignation, she proposes a candidate for prime minister. The parliament is to be constituted within 30 days of the official results being announced. Danas (BBC News na srpskom) ↗ According to observers from CRTA, presidential elections must be called by November 27 and held by December 27. Nova ↗

Brnabić, as deputy chair of the central committee of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), the core of Vučić's list, claimed on Monday on Informer TV that the new government's first step would be sanctions against Russia and that the government would be taking orders from outside. According to her, the SNS will be a tough opposition in parliament. HNonline (Tanjug) ↗ The students' program, however, according to the daily Danas, explicitly speaks of preserving the "traditional partnership" with Russia and rejecting sanctions. Danas ↗

Moscow, Washington, Europe and neighbors

According to the Reuters agency, cited by Danas, the Kremlin hopes the new leadership will understand that cooperation with Moscow is in Serbia's interest. It wants to keep developing relations, "but it takes two to tango." Danas ↗ The US State Department told Radio Free Europe it looks forward to continuing the partnership with the new lawmakers and will build on the strategic dialogue launched in July. Nova ↗

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote that the students had reached people with their demands for the rule of law, the fight against corruption and basic freedoms, and promised active support for Serbia's European path. N1 Srbija ↗ Romanian President Nicușor Dan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson also offered congratulations. Kurir ↗

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković has already spoken by phone with Srdanović. "The message from the citizens of Serbia is very clear, they wanted change," he said, adding that since Vučić admitted defeat immediately, the transition should be peaceful. N1 Srbija ↗ Montenegrin President Jakov Milatović speaks of a new chapter in relations with Belgrade. Radio Sarajevo ↗

The sharpest message came from Banja Luka. People celebrating on Krajina Square on Sunday evening chanted "Mile, thief, you're next," directed at Milorad Dodik. Index.hr, however, notes that according to initial data, Vučić's list led in Banja Luka itself. Index.hr ↗

Slovak detour: Blanár meets Lavrov

On the day Moscow lost its closest ally in Belgrade, Vučić, Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár was meeting Sergei Lavrov in Moscow. After five years, the Slovak-Russian intergovernmental commission reconvened; the main topic was energy supplies, and Blanár offered Bratislava as a venue for preparatory peace talks on Ukraine. iROZHLAS ↗ The opposition criticizes the trip and wants to have the minister dismissed. SITA ↗

In assessing Vučić's defeat, Danas placed Robert Fico among politicians who often deviate from the common EU position, and noted that Viktor Orbán has already lost power. Danas ↗ We also write about Monday's talks in a separate summary.

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Illustrative photo: the building of the National Assembly of Serbia in Belgrade. Wikimedia Commons. Author: Kallerna. License CC BY-SA 4.0.