Serbia voter turnout highest in decades as students oppose longtime leader
Election commission says turnout reaches 65% amid allegations of intimidation, violence and voting irregularities.
Polls have closed in Serbia’s snap parliamentary election, which saw the highest voter turnout in decades, with a student-backed movement seeking to unseat longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic.
Voting ended at 8pm local time (19:00 GMT) on Sunday, with first indications of the result expected a few hours later.
The vote will determine whether Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), which has governed since 2012, can retain power against a movement born from nationwide anticorruption protests.
In Belgrade, police wearing riot helmets and carrying shields deployed near the election commission’s headquarters, where roads were closed and barricades erected.