Serbia’s right-wing populist leader Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat this week after a snap election forced him out of office.
asserted
election → concede → office
The ex-president said it is “clear we have lost these elections” after a student movement won 2.25 million votes compared to the ruling party’s 1.67 million.
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movement → say → million
The students will now choose a new prime minister and other key ministerial positions as their leaderless movement forms a government.
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movement → choose → government
Their movement was created two years ago in response to a railway station disaster, in which 16 people died after a canopy collapsed in front of Novi Sad station.
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canopy → create → station
Protests were triggered by the tragedy, which was blamed on corruption and negligence.
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which → trigger → corruption
So who are the students’ candidates battling for the prime ministerial post?
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candidates → battle → post
DEJAN SOSKIC
Dejan Soskic, 59, an economist and professor at the University of Belgrade's Faculty of Economics, served as governor of the central bank between 2010 and 2012, before resigning in protest at legislative amendments that he argued compromised the institution's independence.
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he → serve → independence
Soskic, who was an avid biker in his youth but has mellowed into a softly spoken reformer, has frequently criticised the country’s institutional weaknesses under Vucic.
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who → mellow → Vucic
In 2021, he said, without offering evidence, that systemic corruption in the Balkan state was more widespread than in neighbouring countries and that it was deterring domestic and foreign direct investment.
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it → say → investment
Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party have repeatedly denied accusations of corruption.
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Vucic → deny → corruption
Soskic says that prudent public finances will create a stable foundation for a permanent increase in wages and pensions.
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finances → say → wages
Pro-government media have criticised Soskic’s central bank record, accusing him of triggering the depreciation of the dinar during his tenure.
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media → criticise → tenure
Soskic has defended the depreciation as a reflection of the mandatory monetary policies of the time rather than a personal failure.
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Soskic → defend → time
Nonetheless, during the election campaign, in order to increase export competitiveness, Soskic proposed correcting, or weakening, the exchange rate of the dinar - which is in a managed float against the euro - to make domestic goods cheaper in foreign currencies.
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goods → increase → currencies
An alternative, he suggested, would be to maintain a fixed, stronger exchange rate but lower costs by cutting wages.
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he → suggest → wages
ILIJA SRDANOVIC
Ilija Srdanovic, 55, a practising cardiologist, professor at the University of Novi Sad Faculty of Medicine and a keen cyclist, became the student movement's lead candidate when the ballot list was finalised in September.
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list → practise → September
Srdanovic’s transition to frontline politics began during the student-led anti-corruption demonstrations, where he frequently appeared as a public speaker.
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he → begin → speaker
The physician participated in the movement's "Guardians of the Constitution" bicycle tour across the northern Vojvodina province.
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physician → participate → province
Srdanovic campaigned with the promise of a decentralised health system "at the service of citizens and based on equality for all patients".
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Srdanovic → campaign → patients
In an interview with the Belgrade-based FoNet news agency, Srdanovic said his political objective was building "a better Serbia, nothing else is important".
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nothing → base → Serbia
He declined an invitation from Vucic to participate in a televised debate during the campaign.
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He → decline → campaign
However, some of his policies do not represent a sharp departure from some of Vucic's.
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some → represent → Vucic
He stressed the Student List position that Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, remains an integral part of the country.
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which → stress → country
He also said that European Union integration is not a current priority and that the immediate focus for the incoming administration must remain on domestic anti-corruption reforms and national "existential survival".
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focus → say → reforms
He described Sunday's election as a fight "for the return of a country that has been hijacked".
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that → describe → country
The step into politics is the latest chapter in a life that has gripped the basketball-mad nation - from capturing back-to-back FIBA World Championship gold medals in 1998 and 2002 and leading the then Yugoslav team to an Olympic silver medal at the 1996 Atlanta Games to entering senior sports administration upon his retirement as a player in 2007 and being appointed as EuroLeague president in 2022.
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that → grip → 2022
During the election campaign, Bodiroga appeared at student rallies and took part in open-air folk dancing in rural municipalities.
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Bodiroga → appear → municipalities
His fans frequently cheered him with a 1990s slogan "We have our God, his name is Bodiroga."
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name → cheer → God
Radomir Saicic, 64, an organic chemistry professor and a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU), was the face of the students' election win on Sunday, taking the podium at their headquarters after Vucic conceded defeat to hail the outcome as a "citizens' victory".
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Vucic → take → victory
He is a specialist in medicinal chemistry whose research focuses on the synthesis of chemotherapy treatments and antiviral therapies, including a special Covid-19 project in collaboration with the Pasteur Institute.
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research → focus → Institute
Saicic joined the student-led anti-corruption protests that followed the 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad.
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that → join → Sad
He became a target for pro-government tabloids after signing a petition with 24 other academics demanding Vucic's resignation, and in May 2026 he walked out of a SANU gallery exhibition to protest an appearance by Nikola Selakovic, the minister of culture.
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he → become → culture
During the campaign, he told crowds that Serbia was "occupied from within" and said he was ready to put "even his life" at the disposal of the student movement.
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he → tell → movement
Saicic says Kosovo is a "temporarily occupied territory" and backs energy ties with Russia.
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Kosovo → say → Russia
Political analysts and local media have tipped him as a contender in the presidential election, which will also be triggered by Vucic's recent resignation from the post.
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which → tip → post
The Aporia
