Serbia’s ruling SNS party wins elections in capital Belgrade

Serbia’s ruling party defeated the opposition on Sunday in a vote for Belgrade city council and partial local elections across the country, marked by scuffles between opposition supporters and those of the populist President Aleksandar Vucic.
According to an unofficial vote count by the pollster CESID, the alliance led by Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) loyal to Vucic, won 52.9% of votes in the capital city.
The rerun in Belgrade came after months of protests that followed Dec. 17 parliamentary and partial local elections which the opposition and international observers said were marred by irregularities, including media bias and vote-buying.
Around 20% of Serbia’s 6.7 million people live in Belgrade and the position of a mayor is seen as the fourth most important in the country, after president, prime minister and parliament speaker.