Serbia votes with record turnout: 67.5% by 7 p.m., long lines in the diaspora too

Polling stations in Serbia closed on Sunday at 8 p.m. after 13 hours of voting in the snap parliamentary elections, with turnout that media and observers called a record. According to data cited by Top Channel, 67.5% of voters had cast ballots by 7 p.m.

The figures through the day

According to CeSID and Ipsos, 46.4% of voters had cast ballots by 2 p.m., compared with 32.2% at the same hour in the December 2023 elections. According to ATSH, turnout at 5 p.m. was 60.9%, while the Republic Electoral Commission (RIK) reported 64.89% by 6 p.m.

The voter rolls listed 6,451,292 people, who voted at 8,392 polling stations in Serbia and 93 abroad. Eighteen lists with 2,418 candidates competed for 250 seats. Those inside polling stations or in line at 8 p.m. were allowed to vote after the official close, while counting began immediately.

The diaspora and incidents

A total of 102,147 citizens in 37 countries registered to vote abroad. According to N1, footage from New York, Washington, London, Athens and other cities showed long lines outside polling stations. In Thessaloniki, home to about 2,000 Serbs according to the Greek agency ANA, the community set off for Athens to vote dressed in pajamas, protesting that the consulate had not opened a polling station for lack of funds.

The monitoring group CRTA reported numerous irregularities during the day and a growing number of violent incidents outside polling stations. Before the polls closed, Vučić said that “if we lose, we will accept the result.”