Thousands of protesters on Sunday rallied in central Serbia, a day after President Aleksandar Vucic said ⁠he would step down within weeks following more than a year of student-led protests.

"The students are winning," Nemanja Karovic, a Belgrade professor who supports the movement, told the crowd from a stage in the main square in Kraljevo, some 170 kilometres (105 miles) south of the capital Belgrade.

Serbia has seen regular student-led, anti-government protests since the collapse of a railway station canopy in the northern city of Novi Sad in November 2024.

The incident, which killed 16 people, has been widely blamed on broader government mismanagement of construction projects and systemic corruption.  

President Vucic says he plans to resign within weeks

Vucic has branded protesters "foreign agents" who seek to overthrow the government, and has rejected calls for early elections before he is officially due to step down in 2027.

However, on Saturday, Vucic told his supporters at a pro-government rally in Belgrade that he would be president "for only a couple more weeks."

"And then I will resign," he added, without giving further details on the election timeline.

Vucic also said he would help his ruling Serbian Progressive Party in the next election. 

Vucic, a dominant figure in Serbian politics

According to Serbia's election law, Vucic, who is currently serving his second term, cannot run again for president.

However, it is expected that after his resignation, Vucic will seek to return to power as prime minister, an office he held from 2014 to 2017.

Though the president of Serbia serves only a ceremonial role under the constitution, Vucic has wielded considerable power over his party and the government.

Edited by: Kieran Burke

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