Thousands Back Vucic as He Launches Campaign

Thousands of supporters of Serbian populist leader Aleksandar Vucic packed the largest indoor arena in Belgrade on Saturday for the de facto launch of his campaign for prime minister, a race that will culminate in a pivotal election on Oct. 25. The early election, which polls suggest could be tight between Vucic's party and a group of candidates fielded by a student-led protest movement, was called after Vucic resigned as president on Sept. 27, cutting short his second term by more than seven months. "Absent an intervention of some (foreign intelligence) service, we will defeat them," he told supporters at the rally, the AP reports. "And they know that."

Vucic, who is constitutionally prohibited from running for a third term as president, declared upon resigning that he would lead his populist Serbian Progressive Party in the parliamentary election. If his party wins a majority of seats, the parliament is expected to elect Vucic as prime minister. Dozens of buses from across Serbia clogged streets around Belgrade Arena on Saturday as supporters arrived carrying Serbian flags and banners with Vucic's picture. The event, televised by dozens of channels across Serbia, capped a week of Vucic touring towns and villages in an apparent bid to shore up his popularity that's been shaken after almost two years of sustained anti-government protests.