Student momentum meets SNS organization
Tens of thousands of students gathered at Slavija Square on October 22 to hold a final rally for the Student List before the October 25 parliamentary election. Participants marched from various parts of Belgrade to the central roundabout under the slogan "Victory Is Calling." This movement grew from protests following the November 1, 2024, disaster at the Novi Sad railway station, where a collapsing concrete canopy killed 16 people and prompted anger over government accountability. While students sang and waved flags, the SNS held a simultaneous rally at a sports hall in New Belgrade. Aleksandar Vucic, who has dominated Serbian politics for more than a decade, delivered a five-point program promising better wages, pensions, healthcare, energy, and education. Vucic intervened from the stage when audience members began calling the students "Ustashe," a term for Croatian fascists, before he urged supporters to vote for the United Serbia list. Outside the SNS venue, buses brought in party supporters as patriotic music played and workers prepared pleskavica. This student-led mobilization easily demonstrates the movement’s ability to move people from towns and cities across the country to the capital after nearly two years of regular protests and street blockades.
Media dominance and polling data
The Student List spent €122,000 on Meta platforms between September 16 and October 15, whereas the SNS spent €105,000 on those platforms.
| Group | Meta Advertising Spend (Sept 16 – Oct 15) |
|---|---|
| Student List | €122,000 |
| SNS | €105,000 |
The movement must contend with the SNS’s extensive local networks, support from older voters, pressure on public-sector employees, and access to traditional media. The Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA) found that government representatives occupied 69% of political airtime on national television during prime-time broadcasts between September 9 and 30, leaving only 31% for the opposition. The CRTA also reported that 88% of the coverage specifically devoted to the Student List was negative in tone. Despite this disadvantage, an NSPM survey published on October 20 placed the Student List at 44.4% and United Serbia at 42.7%. The movement uses social media to reach voters in smaller towns and villages where the ruling party traditionally enjoys strong backing. Success depends on whether street energy reaches undecided voters and those who rarely vote on Sunday.
