The Democratic Party and the Green-Left Front support the student request to hold extraordinary parliamentary elections, but warn that the conditions will not be a fairy tale.
Not everyone is in the opposition explicitly stated whether they support the possible student list on the possible new ones elections...
The representatives of the opposition parties we spoke with say that they support the student request to hold extraordinary parliamentary elections, but warn that the election conditions will not be any better than before and that it is therefore necessary for the whole society to be involved in preventing election manipulations.
The president of the Democratic Party, Srđan Milivojević, tells "Vreme" that the party has pointed out many times that there are no conditions for holding fair and honest elections in Serbia, but that the student demands are currently supported by two thirds of citizens, which is the most trusted social force.
"It is extremely dangerous for the holders of power not to hear the mood of the majority of Serbia, and for other participants in political life it is harmful and disastrous not to understand that voice. The Democratic Party gave unequivocal support to the student demands, put all its capacities and resources at the disposal of the student list, respecting their request that the opposition parties are not expected to run, and we will not do that, neither independently nor in a coalition. We will participate in that fight, because it is not we see it as a struggle for mandates and the conquest of power. This is a struggle for freedom," says Milivojević.
Everyone is welcome
He points out that the widest possible front of rebel Serbia is expected "in which farmers, educators, university professors, rebel lawyers and health workers are also welcome" and that every person has their place in that struggle.
"Students achieved fantastic results, they overthrew the government that Aleksandar Vučić said on November 1, 2024 that he would not give Prime Minister Vučević and the mayor of Novi Sad, so he gave them both," says Milivojević.
He adds that the students have caused Serbia to be viewed in a completely different way in Europe and the world, and concludes that Vučić is no longer a guarantor of peace or stability.
Vučić no longer has the legitimacy to rule
Green-Left Front MP Radomir Lazović told Vreme that the party believes that the student demand for early elections is justified because the mass protests and everything that has happened in Serbia in the past months have shown that Vučić no longer has the legitimacy to rule.
He states that the protest held on March 15, which was the most massive in the history of Serbia, showed that Vučić does not have the support he once had.
"On the other hand, Vučić has the levers of power in his hands and henchmen who are ready to steal the elections again at his beck and call, which must be taken into account when considering the possibility of calling special elections," says Lazović.
He states that the Green-Left Front supported the student request regarding the calling of elections, but he points out that the key issue is how to force Vučić to call them, "for which joint pressure will be needed."
"We are sure that Vučić will avoid the elections as much as he can, since they are not responding to him at the moment because support for the SNS is declining. Of course, this does not mean that the matter is over, those people will fight in every way to preserve their positions and it will take a lot of effort to replace them. That is why we expect to see soon what the students' plan would be to exert pressure on the regime to call elections, because without pressure, we believe that Vučić will certainly not call them," says Lazović.
Complex selection control
He states that the motivation and determination with which the students act could be important in motivating people to get involved in election control, but indicates that it is a complex process for which it is not enough just to have controllers at each polling station.
"That is not enough, because the theft of elections happens much earlier and through the control of the media carried out by the Serbian Progressive Party, as well as through official campaigns, manipulation of the voter list and blackmail of people who work in the public sector to vote for SNS. We may not be able to achieve completely fair elections, but we can reduce the theft of votes," says Lazović.
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The example of the elections in Zaječar and Kosjerić shows that the truth is not given, but assumed. Truth is a task that a citizen fulfills. She always wins
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