President Aleksandar Vučić celebrated an apparent clean sweep at Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) headquarters after local ballots in 10 municipalities where 247,985 people were eligible to vote. On paper SNS won all contests, extending a long run of dominance. But observers say the reality was more complicated — and potentially worrying for the ruling party.
International monitors again pointed to persistent problems: pro-government media that dominate the information space, use of state resources during the campaign and so-called “functionary campaigning,” where public employees are visibly mobilized for the party. Familiar election-day irregularities were reported across several towns, including alleged vote-buying, pressure on voters, parallel voter lists and distribution of pre-marked ballots often called the “Bulgarian train.” Groups organizing transport to polling stations, breaches of ballot secrecy and systematic monitoring of turnout also suggested coordinated efforts to shape results.
This round of voting saw a sharper escalation in violence and intimidation. Rasa Nedeljkov, head of the independent CRTA observation mission, said people who tried to document or stop illegal activity were often met with force — those intervening were hit with batons, she said. Observers and journalists reported organized, often masked groups carrying sticks and, in some accounts, even axes. Several people were attacked; reporters and election monitors suffered injuries and some required hospital treatment.
CRTA warned that the scale and coordination of the assaults, and the fact that some attackers were seen entering or leaving party offices and public buildings, pointed to political backing rather than isolated street violence. Officials and pro-government outlets offered a different framing: parliament speaker Ana Brnabić posted footage of men in black confronting demonstrators and portrayed their actions as defending public order. Police responses were frequently described as slow or insufficient, reinforcing perceptions of weak institutional control during the vote.
Despite the pressure on opponents and observers, many SNS victories were much narrower than in the past. Several races were decided by only a few hundred votes, and in at least three or four municipalities the outcome hinged on a single seat, according to Dusan Spasojevic, a political scientist at the University of Belgrade. That forced the ruling party to turn to coalition partners to secure control — an uneasy and unfamiliar dynamic for a party used to commanding margins.
Analysts say these results do not yet constitute a definitive break with the status quo, but they do reveal cracks in an electoral system that long appeared unassailable. Opposition parties, student activists and civil society groups will need better coordination to turn these signs into sustained political momentum. For observers like Nedeljkov, the immediate priority remains pressing for genuinely fair conditions: walking away from elections now would risk accepting the abuses that marred voting in these ten municipalities.
For the moment, Vučić and SNS can point to victories across the board. Attention is already shifting to the question of early parliamentary elections — which many in the opposition see as the next, potentially decisive, arena in Serbia’s political contest.
Edited by: Astrid Benölken, Ruairi Casey