Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told supporters on Saturday that he will resign within weeks, paving the way for early presidential and parliamentary elections.

“I will be president for only a couple of weeks, and then I will resign,” Vucic said at a pro-government rally in the capital Belgrade. He said he would help his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party in the upcoming elections and that this was probably the last time he would address them as Serbia's president.

Vucic's second and final term was set to expire in mid-2027. He has gradually tightened his grip on power since his populist party took over the Serbian government 14 years ago.

The resignation announcement comes against the backdrop of months of student-led mass anti-government protests that have shaken the country. Tens of thousands have rallied across Serbia since November 2024, when the Novi Sad rail station disaster killed 16 people and sparked mass anger at the government.

The European Union accused Serbian police of excessive force and arbitrary arrests. The protests eventually led to the resignation of then-Prime Minister Milos Vucevic in January 2025. Vucic has repeatedly called protesters “foreign agents,” accusing them of “fuelling divisions” and seeking to overthrow the government.

Source: www.aljazeera.com