Vucic resigns as Serbian president, vowing 'the war has just begun'
On the evening of September 27, local time, in front of the Presidential Palace in Belgrade, many supporters held torches and shouted Vucic’s Serbian nickname ‘Aco’ to welcome him for his speech.
Vucic walked out of the building and told his supporters: 'Tonight is the last time I will appear in this beautiful building as president. ’
Subsequently, he signed his resignation and formally resigned as President of Serbia, ending his second term ahead of schedule.
In his speech, he thanked the people for their trust in the presidential election twice. 'I served Serbia with honor and integrity,' he said.
He admitted that he had 'made a lot of mistakes' during his time in power. But then the conversation changed: ‘Now I’m waiting to resign, but the war has just begun. We were not born to sit on a throne of power, and we can defeat them without that throne. ’
Before the end of his speech, he said to all the supporters present: 'I have always been one of you, and from tomorrow I will officially become one of you, fighting with you for a decent, successful and normal Serbia. Long live Serbia. Let's go beat them! ’
On the morning of the 28th, Vucic will hand over the presidential responsibilities to the Speaker of the National Assembly, who will act as president. According to Serbian law, the Speaker of the National Assembly must declare a presidential election within three months.
According to Vucic's previous statement, after resigning, he will participate in the parliamentary election on October 25 as an 'ordinary citizen' to compete for the position of prime minister.
This resignation is actually not sudden.
As early as June 27 this year, Vucic publicly stated that he would hand over the presidency in a few weeks and hold early parliamentary elections.
On September 5, the General Council of the ruling Kadima Party unanimously elected him as the leader of the parliamentary election list and the prime ministerial candidate; Vucic accepted the election and promised to resign and run for the election after completing recent state activities and foreign visits.
On September 9, he signed a presidential decree dissolving parliament and moving the parliamentary election to October 25.
Why such a big detour?
Serbia is a parliamentary country, and the real power is held by the prime minister, not the president.
Vucic served as prime minister from 2014 to 2017, and then became president; he was elected in April 2017 and re-elected in May 2022. According to the constitution, the presidential term is 5 years and can be re-elected once at most. This term was originally scheduled to end in May 2027.
Resigning as president and running for prime minister is tantamount to circumventing this term limit. Some analysts pointed out that this is a move to 'retreat in order to advance' - from a symbolic position in front of the stage to return to the Prime Minister's Office, which holds real power, and continue to control the situation.
Taking the initiative to hand over power actually comes with realistic pressures.
In November 2024, the roof of a train station in the northern city of Novi Sad collapsed, killing more than a dozen people. The resulting anti-corruption protests lasted for nearly two years and have not subsided yet. Several Serbian government officials said that the protests were supported by "external forces", but the EU denied the relevant claims.
For Vucic, it is better to resign and hold early elections than to react passively. This will not only weaken the opposition's reasons for continuing to demonstrate on the streets, but also consolidate its ruling position before the other party can consolidate resources.
Judging from previous polls, Vucic is quite confident in this move.
Data released by the Serbian polling agency ‘Faktor Plus’ in early September showed that the support rate of the Kadima Party reached 47.2%, ranking first in the country.
If this momentum continues, it will be almost natural for Vucic to become prime minister. Vucic himself said that he will travel throughout Serbia as an ordinary citizen to communicate with the people; once the Kadima Party wins, the new government will streamline its organization and consist of the prime minister and up to 12 ministers.
Some analysts say that this election is to a large extent a 'referendum' on Vucic's governance - supporters see it as a symbol of stability and continuity, while opponents hope to use it to promote political reshuffle.
But for Vucic, the real risk is not winning the election, but after the election.
The U.S. Political News Network reported in June that the EU's originally planned steps related to Serbia's accession to the EU were postponed because Vucic announced that he would resign and hold early elections. In addition, if turnout is low and the opposition refuses to recognize the results, street protests could return.
Even if Vucic successfully becomes prime minister, he will still face a relatively tense political situation.
October 25th is the voting day for the parliamentary election. At that time, Serbians will use their votes to answer a question: whether this political veteran who wants to "retreat" from president to prime minister can do so.
Author: Zhang Huandi
