Branko Ruzic Expelled From SPS in Unanimous Vote
SPS's Statutory Commission voted unanimously, with all 11 members present, to expel Branko Ruzic from the party over prolonged violations of its Statute and the political damage they say he caused.
On Sunday evening, August 31, the Statutory Commission of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) decided to expel Branko Ruzic from the party. All 11 members of the commission attended the vote, and the decision was unanimous. Until that point, Ruzic had served as deputy chairman of the SPS Main Board.
The first reports of the decision appeared between 6:27 and 7:03 p.m., though SPS did not publish its official statement until 8:38 p.m. The party cited a serious violation of its Statute as the legal basis for the expulsion. The statement said Ruzic had “continuously and knowingly violated provisions of the Statute over a longer period, failed to fulfill his obligations to carry out the decisions of party bodies and the party’s unified policy, and in doing so caused enormous political damage to SPS.”
Along with its explanation, the party added the following:
The Socialist Party of Serbia cannot have two policies. One belongs to the party’s highest bodies, voted on by everyone at sessions of those bodies, and the other is the policy of Branko Ruzic or any other individual, presented in the media. No individual can stand above the Party, its bodies, its Statute, its Program or its unified policy.
What Ruzic Is Accused Of
This is not the first disciplinary proceeding against him. The same Statutory Commission suspended him for six months on April 4, 2025, over his participation in the March 15, 2025 protest, which SPS at the time described as an attempt at a “violent overthrow of the government” in which the party participates.
According to SPS, Ruzic did not comply with that decision and instead continued to publicly argue with and criticize the leadership. In its explanation for the expulsion, the commission listed a series of specific actions:
- on the anniversary of the protest, March 15 this year, he posted footage of his participation in the demonstrations to Instagram
- on April 16, 2025, despite being an SPS member of the National Assembly, he did not vote for the election of the current Government of Serbia
- in a TV appearance on May 11 this year, he said students could not win on their own and would have to cooperate with someone
- in a newspaper interview on June 5 this year, he said the student movement could become a political partner in the future
- on May 25, on the former Day of Youth, he posted a photo of the May 23 demonstrations at Slavija in support of the so called blockaders
- on August 17 this year, he assessed that SPS running independently in the parliamentary elections was “just a good first step,” which the commission judged to contradict the Main Board’s July decision
SPS singled out that last point as a source of “enormous political damage.” On July 17, the Main Board unanimously decided that the party would neither cooperate with nor support the so called student, or blockader, list, and Ruzic’s August statement, in the commission’s assessment, directly challenged that decision.
Can Ruzic Appeal?
Under the SPS Statute, a decision of the Statutory Commission is final at first instance, and an appeal is possible only to the party’s Congress, its highest body. The statement does not say whether Ruzic intends to use that option.
The commission session was originally scheduled for Saturday, two days before the decision was made, but did not take place then. While the outcome was still uncertain, Ruzic told N1 that he was awaiting the party’s official position.
“There will be a comment tonight or in the morning on my Instagram profile. I am waiting for the official decision,” he said.
Sources close to SPS claim that Ivica Dacic, the party’s leader, had earlier promised Aleksandar Vucic that the Ruzic case would be closed by September 1 at the latest. SPS itself does not mention that motive in its statement, standing instead by its explanation about violations of the Statute.
Ruzic spent most of his political career in SPS: he was a member of parliament for 25 years, the party’s spokesman for seven years, a minister across four terms, and first deputy prime minister. He resigned as education minister after the tragedy at the “Vladislav Ribnikar” elementary school, and since then had increasingly openly argued that SPS should pursue an independent policy rather than remain tied to the ruling Serbian Progressive Party.
