Serbia’s President Vucic steps down as head of governing party
President Aleksandar Vucic says he will remain head of state amid continued anti-government protests following two consecutive mass shootings.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has resigned as leader of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) following anti-government protests over two mass shootings that killed 18 people this month.
Vucic told an SNS congress on Saturday that he would remain head of state, but that a new approach was needed to unite the country.
“A slightly different approach is needed to unite a larger number of those who want to fight for the victory of patriotic Serbia… a successful Serbia that will focus on its citizens, for a country that will not look for reasons for division , but for unification and togetherness,” said the 53-year-old.
The move came a day after tens of thousands of people from across Serbia as well as neighboring countries Kosovo, Montenegro and Bosnia gathered in the center of Serbia’s capital Belgrade to show their support for Vucic following the massive anti-government protests over the shootings.
Later on Saturday, another anti-government protest was scheduled.
SNS leaders accepted Vucic’s offer of resignation at the party congress in Kragujevac, central Serbia, and appointed Defense Minister Milos Vucevic to replace him, as Vucic had suggested.
Opposition parties and rights watchdogs have long accused Vucic and the SNS of autocracy, stifling media freedoms, violence against political opponents, corruption and ties to organized crime.
Vucic and his allies deny the allegations.
Vucic told Congress he would remain head of state and remain a party member. “I will never leave this party, I am proud to have led the best party all these years,” he told cheering delegates.
Following his appointment, Vucic confirmed that the SNS will join an umbrella political organization that Vucic plans to establish on June 28.
“If Vucic is a locomotive of that movement, the first train car would be the SNS,” he told reporters.
Mass shootings shock Serbia
Tens of thousands of Serbs gathered in Belgrade earlier this month after two consecutive deadly shootings left the country and the surrounding Balkan region in a state of shock.
A 13-year-old suspect carried out an attack that authorities say had been planned for months. A day later, a 21-year-old suspect in a moving car opened fire on passersby in a town south of Belgrade.
After the shootings, the teachers’ union of Serbia announced a strike and called for an end to the promotion of violence in the country.
“We demand a ban on the promotion and public appearances of all convicted criminals, as well as all reality shows in which the participants behave violently,” their statement read.
During their protest march, Serbs demanded better security, a ban on violent content on TV and the resignation of key ministers.
Vucic became president of the SNS in 2012, replacing Tomislav Nikolic who had held the position since 2008 when the party was formed as an offshoot of the ultra-nationalist Serbian Radical Party.
He first served as deputy prime minister and prime minister, and was subsequently elected president in 2017 and 2022. His second and final term will expire in 2027. Together with its allies, the SNS has a majority of 164 seats in the 250-member parliament.
A nationalist stake during the wars of the 1990s, Vucic later embraced pro-European policies and proclaimed Serbia’s membership in the European Union as his strategic goal. He also maintains close ties with Russia and China.