DOMINANT ANGLE
Ottawa notes the fall of a strongman after fourteen years: the Canadian press frames Vučić's defeat as a domestic political shift, driven by the student street and compared to that of Orbán.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Vučić projects 135 to 140 seats out of 250 for the Student List versus around 105 for the SNS, meaning 2.2 million votes versus 1.7 million.
- 02
Turnout is nearing 70%, the highest since 1992 according to CBC.
- 03
The movement emerged from the collapse of the Novi Sad train station canopy in 2024, which killed 16 people.
ANALYSIS
Ottawa, October 26, 2026. Canadian media describe a "political earthquake" in the Balkans. Global News, CBC, and the Globe and Mail agree: on Sunday, October 25, Aleksandar Vučić acknowledged his defeat to the Student List, after fourteen years of power described as "virtually absolute" by Global News, which quotes a news agency dispatch.
"It is clear that we have lost these elections, the Student List has won," Vučić said, according to CBC, projecting 135 to 140 seats for his opponents versus 105 for the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), in a 250-seat Parliament. He mentioned around 2.2 million votes for the students versus 1.7 million for his party. An exit poll cited by CBC gives 138 MPs to the students and 104 to the SNS. The announcement came about an hour and a half after the polling stations closed.
The Globe and Mail, before the vote count, emphasized the mobilization: lines in front of polling stations, 27.3% participation at 11 am versus 15.1% in the 2023 election, and Vučić himself waiting nearly two hours to vote. CBC later reported participation at nearly 70%, the highest since the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992.
The story goes back to the origin of the movement: the collapse of the Novi Sad train station canopy in 2024, which killed 16 people, and then nearly two years of protests against perceived corruption and rampant authoritarianism. A professor at the University of Belgrade, Radomir Sajcic, said on behalf of the students: "Tonight we celebrate the victory, tomorrow we build the future." In the streets of Belgrade, horns and slogans, including "Aleksandar is gone."
Global News notes that Vučić, supported by Vladimir Putin, attributed his defeat to independent media, interference from unnamed European countries, and a "deep American state." The Globe and Mail recalls, however, that many voters credit him with building highways, railways, schools, and hospitals, and that Vučić had resigned as president to run for prime minister.
The Globe and Mail draws a parallel with Viktor Orbán's defeat in Hungary in April and sees the student victory as a possible model for other youth movements in Europe.
