Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has resigned after more than a year of student-led protests over alleged government corruption. Snap parliamentary elections are due in late October, with a presidential vote more than a month later. Ana Brnabić is to serve as interim president.
The 2024 collapse of Novi Sad railway station's roof, which killed 16 people, galvanised anger at the government. Demonstrators said the disaster reflected more than a decade of Progressive Party rule, amid anger over alleged corner-cutting. Protests continued through the summer, with unrest following accusations of police brutality.
Vučić is seeking to be the Progressive Party's candidate for prime minister in the parliamentary election. Serbia's public broadcaster RTS reported that he used his constitutional powers to pardon 49 people, including 23 students and party loyalists suspected of offences related to what he called the “terrible events” of the past year and a half.
