Serbia Turnout Nears 35% by Noon

Turnout in Serbia’s snap parliamentary election reached about 35% of registered voters by noon, according to the Republic Electoral Commission (RIK), which counted 34.55% at 12:00 CET (7:00 a.m. ET). That was well above the 27.3% that CeSID and Ipsos estimated an hour earlier.

Serbians are choosing all 250 seats of the National Assembly on Sunday 25 October, in a contest between President Aleksandar Vučić’s ruling camp and a student-led list. Read our earlier turnout report and our election-day report for the background.

Turnout Climbs Hour by Hour

CeSID, a Serbian election-monitoring group, and Ipsos estimated turnout at 27.3% by 11:00 CET (6:00 a.m. ET), against 15.1% at the same hour in 2023. That is 12.2 percentage points higher.

An hour earlier, RIK, the state body that runs the vote, reported 19.72% by 10:00 CET, against 9.94% in 2023. The monitoring group CRTA had counted 19.8% at that hour.

Reports of Irregularities

CeSID, a Serbian election-monitoring group, reported voter-list discrepancies in the city of Niš. We have not independently verified the report.

CRTA, another monitoring group, plans a parallel vote count at a sample of 500 polling stations to check the official result. Its figures can differ from those of RIK.

What Prediction Markets Say

At 8:24 a.m. ET on 25 October, Polymarket priced the Student List at about 57% to win the parliamentary election, with about US$6.8 million traded in the winner market. Vučić’s ruling list, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) camp, traded at about 43%.

Polymarket is a crypto-based prediction market, and these prices are last-traded bets, not polls. They move with every trade and can differ between platforms.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What It Means for You

If you follow European politics from the United States, high turnout in a Balkan state signals a vote many Serbians see as decisive. It may shape how Serbia balances its ties with Western institutions, Russia and China.

Morning figures do not show which list voters chose, so treat them as a guide to interest, not to the result. If you travel to Serbia, check your government’s travel advice, because rallies around the count are possible in Belgrade.

What Is Not Known

The final turnout and the winner are unknown. Polls close at 20:00 CET (3:00 p.m. ET), and only the Republic Electoral Commission publishes the official result.

Nothing yet shows which list is ahead. Projections are expected only after polls close and are not official results.

Sources

The Rio Times Serbia election updates · Republic Electoral Commission of Serbia · CRTA · Danas · nistv.rs · Direktno · 021.rs · Polymarket

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief

Frequently Asked Questions

What was turnout in Serbia’s election by noon?

RIK reported 34.55% by 12:00 CET (7:00 a.m. ET) on 25 October 2026. This is an interim turnout figure, not a result.

How does turnout compare with 2023?

CeSID and Ipsos put turnout at 27.3% by 11:00 CET, against 15.1% at the same hour in 2023. RIK had 19.72% by 10:00 CET, against 9.94% in 2023.

When do polls close in Serbia’s election?

Polls close at 20:00 CET on Sunday 25 October 2026, which is 3:00 p.m. ET. Only the Republic Electoral Commission publishes the official result.

What do prediction markets say about the vote?

At 8:24 a.m. ET, Polymarket priced the Student List at about 57% to win. These are last-traded bets, not polls or forecasts.