Polling stations in Serbia opened at 07:00 and close at 20:00. Eighteen lists with a total of 2,418 candidates are competing for 250 parliamentary mandates, and 6,450,523 voters are eligible to vote. The Croatian minority community has no candidate of its own.
According to data from CRTA, 67.8 per cent of voters had cast their ballots by 19:00. The Republic Election Commission (REK) stated at a press conference that 64.89 per cent of voters had turned out by 18:00, while CeSid estimated that 60.9 per cent of voters had voted by 17:00, based on a sample of 750 polling stations. CRTA had previously reported that 56.4 per cent of citizens had voted in the extraordinary parliamentary elections by 16:00.
Observers recorded irregularities involving pressure on voters, polling committee members and observers at 29 per cent of polling stations. Procedural failures were noted at 18 per cent, while irregularities concerning the integrity of the vote were visible at 17 per cent of polling stations. Photographing ballot papers was recorded at as many as 40 per cent of polling stations, failure to use UV lamps as required at 21 per cent, and voting without valid documents at 6 per cent of polling stations.
The situation in central Belgrade is tense. Men in black hoods passed through Terazije and headed towards the so-called 'Ćaciland' in front of the National Assembly. Traffic from Terazije to London was blocked by members of the Police Brigade, and pedestrian passage was also prohibited, with the exception of those who live or work on that stretch of Kralja Milana Street. Shop owners on Kralja Milana Street, near the Republic Election Commission and the Presidency building, are placing protective wooden blocks on their shop windows. A large number of police vehicles were spotted at several locations in central Belgrade, with the highest concentration of police officers stationed at Pionirski Park. A large number of Gendarmerie vehicles arrived at the previously cordoned-off area in front of the Republic Election Commission, which overlooks Pionirski Park, and street lighting in that area has been switched off. In Pionirski Park, not far from the Serbian Parliament, a tent settlement known as Ćacilend reappeared before the polling stations closed, which is also being monitored by police. Riot vehicles are positioned in front of the main entrance to the Presidency building near Pionirski Park; these are the same vehicles used last summer in Novi Sad. Police forces have prevented access to the Republic Election Commission.
Incidents are occurring minute by minute across Serbia. A video of a physical altercation in front of the Agricultural School in Pančevo appeared on social media, showing scenes of violence between several men. A politically toned message was published with the video, sharply criticising the government and the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). The attacker of Aleksandar Vučić’s mother has been arrested. The head of the European Union Delegation in Serbia, Andreas von Beckerath, stated that they are 'deeply concerned about the reported violent incidents at multiple polling stations'.
Aleksandar Vučić gave up his position as president to run for prime minister. On Sunday, faced with a huge turnout, he waited in line for almost two hours to vote. He stated: 'If we lose, we will accept defeat. If we win, no one will take our victory from us'. The biggest challenge for the SNS will be the Student List – Students Win. Students in Blockade, who have led protests in Serbia for two years, posted on the social network X, thanking citizens for their patience, urging them not to give up on voting despite the long queues at polling stations, and stating that victory is closer than ever. Zoran Kesić, host of the satirical show '24 minutes with Zoran Kesić', fulfilled his voting duty this morning in the Belgrade municipality of Vračar and stated that he expects the Student List’s victory to be so convincing that the authorities will not think of provoking tensions. Around 60 voters from the village of Merdželat in south-eastern Serbia are exercising their voting rights in a summer kitchen.
