Serbia votes in double-header elections

BELGRADE: Serbians headed to the polls on Sunday in elections that will likely see populist President Aleksandar Vucic´s ruling party extend its rule, as the strongman promised stability and vowed to curb inflation after months of protests.

Even though Vucic will not be on the ballot in Sunday´s parliamentary and local elections, the contest will nevertheless be largely seen as a referendum on his government. Vucic´s right-wing populist Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) has a double-digit lead over the leading opposition coalition, according to a latest poll by Ipsos.

But the SNS faces hard-fought municipal races in the capital Belgrade, particularly from the loose coalition of opposition parties and candidates running under the “Serbia Against Violence” banner.

The movement was formed in the wake of back-to-back mass shootings earlier this year that spurred hundreds of thousands to take to the streets. The rallies quickly morphed into anti-government protests that lasted months.

Vucic has repeatedly dismissed his critics and the protests as a foreign plot, warning that Serbia would be directionless without his leadership. “It´s not about me leaving power, but about them destroying everything,” he told supporters at a recent rally. “It would take us 20 years to fix everything... That´s why we´ll beat them more convincingly than ever.”