Serbia’s PM Vucic Asks President to Call Early Elections

Serbia’s Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic has proposed to President Tomislav Nikolic to dissolve parliament and call elections two years early, Tanjug reported on Thursday.

Having succeeded in “pulling the country out of recession with difficult economic reforms and opening the first chapters in EU entry talks” since taking office in 2014, the government now needs a fresh mandate to complete the reforms that will put Serbia firmly on the path to EU membership and bring the country to the EU doorstep, the proposal read, according to Tanjug.

In a nationally televised address on state RTS channel on Tuesday Vucic called for early parliamentary elections on April 24 and set out the objectives which he would pursue in the next four years, if the governing SNS party wins the election.

“I want our education and health system to reach a modern European level. I want every person in Serbia to have decent job so we can eradicate poverty and offer families a higher living standard. We have to continue our fight against corruption and establish our country with one rule of law for all,” Vucic said. 

In the last general election held in April 2014, SNS won 158 of the 250 seats in parliament.

Tomislav Nikolic said on Wednesday that he would call early elections as soon as the government requests him to do so.