The party of Aleksandar Vucic has won 189 seats out of 250 in Parliament, while the opposition is reduced, and denounces an authoritarian drift.
the party of The Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic has expanded Sunday its hold on power by a tidal wave election to the Parliament, where the opposition is reduced to skin of sorrow and denounces an authoritarian drift. “I am grateful to the people for this support history,” launched the head of State, announcing that the Serbian Party of progress (SNS, centre right) has considerably expanded its dominance with approximately 63% of the vote.
“We have won everywhere, we have won where we had never won it,” he said. The SNS won 189 seats out of 250 against 131 in the previous legislature, according to the estimates of Ipsos. These first national elections in Europe since the confinement imposed by the pandemic of the sars coronavirus were carried out in the shadow of the president. Aleksandar Vucic was not presented, but his name appeared on the ballot as the boss of the SNS, the party in power since 2012.
In the second position, the partner of SNS in the outgoing coalition, the socialist Party of serbia (SPS, the centre-left), credited with 11% of the votes by Ipsos. This victory without the appeal was spurred by the boycott of the election by the main opposition parties, according to which free elections were impossible because of the distortion of the media landscape and democratic.
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The party leader is less legitimate without opposition?
in Spite of their appeals to stay at home and fears related to the sars coronavirus, the participation has not declined dramatically, to less than 50%, according to estimates from the independent NGO CRTA. This has not prevented the opposition parties as to the origin of the boycott to denounce election “fake” and claim the success of their movement.
A score of other formations of the opposition had chosen to be present. But only one of them seemed likely to cross the bar of 3% of the vote needed to enter Parliament, where she learnt of the parties representing the minorities to which this threshold does not apply. Among the ousted, the party of the ultra-nationalist Vojislav Seselj.
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Despite appearances, the “biggest loser of the election is the SNS” that has achieved “a Pyrrhic victory”, commented on Twitter Florian Bieber, a specialist of the Balkans. “No opposition in Parliament”, the party leader could be seen as “less legitimate than ever before.” The Constitution confers on the president role of the honorary but Aleksandar Vucic, 50 years, is without a doubt the one who makes the decisions. The head of State, who was twice Prime minister, has become more popular than ever during the crisis of the sars coronavirus, according to the polls.
analysts speak of the “authoritarian system competitive.” “It was a competition, but the protagonists are not equal,” says Dusan Spasojevic, professor of political science at the university of Belgrade. The party leader enjoys a media landscape dominated by the press, pro-government, and a broad electoral base made up of employees in the public service and their relatives, point out analysts.
Russia and China, allies of weight
The head of State could also rely on allies of weight on the international scene. In addition to China and Russia, Aleksandar Vucic, is supported by the West which sees it as capable of resolving the dispute with Kosovo, the former Serbian province which Belgrade refuses to acknowledge independence.
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After the election, he will have to work hard at the dialogue with Pristina, frozen for more than a year. The next week, he will meet with the european envoy to Serbia and Kosovo, will be in Moscow and then will meet with the representatives from kosovo to the White House. After voting Sunday, the head of State has warned that the “days and weeks ahead will be difficult, in particular in respect of Kosovo”.
