SNS Submits 224,557 Signatures for October 25 Vote

Serbia’s Republic Election Commission (RIK) today received the first complete candidate list for the early parliamentary election set for October 25. Minister for Public Investment Darko Glisic, acting as the authorized nominee, delivered the documentation for the “Aleksandar Vucic, United Serbia” list at around 1 p.m.: a roster of 250 candidates for parliament and 224,557 certified citizen signatures of support, carried in in 200 boxes.

The handover was attended by Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) president Milos Vucevic, National Assembly Speaker Ana Brnabic, Finance Minister Sinisa Mali, Economy Minister Adrijana Mesarovic, along with Stojan Radenovic and Milos Pavlovic. According to Tanjug and Informer, this is the first list handed to the commission for the upcoming election cycle, meaning that, if the commission certifies it within the legal deadline, it takes the top spot on the consolidated ballot.

Why the signature counts differ

The reported number of signatures varied from outlet to outlet through the afternoon. Vucevic told reporters that 224,557 citizens had backed the list, a figure carried by Tanjug, Sputnik, Pink, N1, Nis TV and Informer in its headline. Kurir, the portal 021 and sd.rs wrote of more than 225,000 signatures, while Informer’s own article cited a figure of 224,577. Glisic, carrying the documentation out of the hall, tossed off a brief, smiling remark to reporters:

“We only brought 225,000 signatures.”

The gap between the figures cited is small and likely comes down to when each newsroom picked up the number, since collection was reportedly still under way the evening before the handover itself.

Collection began a day earlier

Municipal boards of the Serbian Progressive Party began collecting signatures in the afternoon of September 11. Aleksandar Vucic said at 9 p.m. that evening that more than 170,000 signatures had been collected in the first three hours, and that by the evening the party said it had gathered more than 200,000. By comparison, the legal minimum for an election list is 10,000 certified voter statements, according to the portal 021.

Serbian Progressive Party MP Vladimir Djukanovic also spoke to the scale of the drive, pointing to the signature count from the previous election cycle:

“In just four hours, the ‘United Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic’ list collected 224,577 signatures, which were submitted to RIK. For the last election, close to 93,000 were submitted. It’s now completely clear how much the people have risen up and how much they want to stop the attempted color revolution once and for all. We’re going into this election to crush them,” Djukanovic said.

Speaking to reporters outside the commission’s building, Vucevic first thanked citizens:

“On behalf of our Aleksandar Vucic, United Serbia list, and on behalf of all the candidates and everyone who is part of this idea, I want to express my gratitude to the citizens of Serbia.”

He added that a record number of signatures carries an obligation, in two separate statements carried by different outlets the same day:

“A great responsibility lies ahead of us, every signature is an obligation for us, every signature adds to our burden of responsibility.”

“Every signature means an obligation for us. Every signature is the first and last name of one person.”

Who is on the list, and who comes after Vucevic

The list is headed by Aleksandar Vucic, who is also its candidate for prime minister, Tanjug specified. Running alongside the Serbian Progressive Party on the same list are its coalition partners:

• The Serbian Radical Party
• The Party of United Pensioners, Farmers and Proletarians of Serbia, Solidarity and Justice (PUPS)
• Zeljko Veselinovic’s Workers’ Party

The portal Srpske Vesti had reported before the submission that PUPS had joined the “Aleksandar Vucic, United Serbia” list, so today’s handover confirms an arrangement that had already been announced.

Vucevic also used the occasion to signal the shape of the future government, though outlets quoted him in somewhat different wording. Pink reported Vucevic as saying that the head of Serbia’s government must be someone who answers to all of Serbia’s citizens, while Sputnik recorded the same remark in a version where he adds that they believe in a free and sovereign Serbia. Based on the sources available to us, Vucevic’s exact words were:

“We believe in a free Serbia, that the head of Serbia’s government must be someone who answers to all citizens of Serbia.”

“We believe in a free and sovereign Serbia.”

Vucevic said the campaign running up to the election will last six weeks and that he expects it to be tough and demanding, with visits planned to every municipality to present the list along with its program and platform.

What happens before October 25

The Republic Election Commission has a legal deadline of 48 hours to review the documentation and certify the list, an obligation cited by Sputnik, Tanjug and Informer. The commission itself issued no separate public statement on the submitted list today. According to available reports, no other list was submitted to the commission the same day, nor did opposition parties comment on the submission.

Until the list is officially certified, the next concrete deadline is exactly that: 48 hours from September 12, within which the commission must decide whether the documentation is complete or needs correcting.