Vucic: New Resignation Date Is September 27
Serbia's president said on TV Pink that he will resign on September 27, having earlier mentioned September 25 or 26. Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic would then hold the post for up to three months.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on the evening of September 14, appearing on TV Pink’s National Daily news show, that he will submit his resignation from the presidency on September 27. That is a Sunday, the day before the final stretch of campaigning begins ahead of the early parliamentary election called for October 25.
“On September 27, I will submit my resignation from the office of president. I will address the people that evening and thank them for their support,” Vucic said, adding that he has “served longer as President of the Republic than anyone since the multiparty system was established in our country” and that he “could not have done so without the citizens of this country.”
“The only thing I can say is that I served Serbia faithfully, served the citizens of this country faithfully, faithfully, diligently, dedicatedly, combatively,” the president said in the same appearance.
The substance of the announcement is not new, but the date is now more precise. Vucic has been signaling his departure from office ever since the parliamentary election was called, and his previous attempt to name an exact day, “September 25 or 26,” came just one day before this latest statement. N1 and Insajder tie that earlier announcement to September 11, while the outlet Srpske vesti, in its own earlier report headlined “Vucic: I Am Resigning on September 25 or 26,” dated the same statement to September 12. The discrepancy between the two dates cited by the sources remains unexplained. The resignation date itself, based on what the president said on Pink, is now specific: September 27.
Who takes over after the resignation
What happens after the resignation is not left to interpretation. Under Serbia’s Law on the President of the Republic, a resignation is submitted in writing to the Speaker of the National Assembly, and the mandate ends the moment the document reaches the Assembly. Until a new head of state is elected, for a period of no more than three months, the duties of president are taken over by the Speaker of the Assembly, currently Ana Brnabic. During that time she represents the state, calls elections, proposes the mandate holder for forming a government, and commands the Serbian Armed Forces. One complication is that the Assembly she chairs has already been dissolved ahead of the early parliamentary election on October 25, meaning she would carry out the acting presidential duties while heading a body that is not formally in session.
An early presidential election must be called and held within three months of the mandate ending, and under the same law at least 30 and at most 60 days must pass between the day the election is called and the day of the vote. Vucic has not yet specified exactly when he would call that election, beyond an earlier suggestion that it could take place a few months after the parliamentary vote.
Campaigning without office
Vucic said that after resigning he will join the campaign for the “Aleksandar Vucic, United Serbia” list as a private citizen holding no office.
“I’ve also gotten a small truck, I have my own car. I’ve also gotten a camper, since I won’t be able to sleep just anywhere. I’ll go to the most remote villages, and stay until late when I do,” he said on TV Pink, adding that he plans to visit urban areas as well, “in front of a shop, in front of a nightclub.”
He announced three or four large campaign rallies, in Belgrade, Novi Sad and Kragujevac, with a closing rally he said would most likely be held in Nis. Vucic repeated that he expects a decisive win for the list he leads, and that any result below 50 percent of the vote would personally disappoint him. “Any result below 50 percent for our list, I would be dissatisfied,” he said, adding that he would concede defeat on election night as soon as the first representative results come in. “If we lose the election, I will concede by 9:30 or 10 in the evening,” the president said.
As of this writing, neither the opposition nor the Student List had responded to the new resignation date.
