Serbia Sees First TV Debate Between Ruling Party and Student List

Ana Brnabic and Mirjana Nikolic at the election debate. Source: N1 Serbia’s first election debate ahead of October 25 polls aired on TV on Thursday night, pitting former prime minister and current speaker Ana Brnabic – third on the government’s “Aleksandar Vucic – United Serbia” list – against Mirjana Nikolic, Rector of the University of Arts in Belgrade and a candidate on the rival “Student List – Students Win”. The debate on the N1 TV channel was supposed to focus on education but quickly expanded into a wider confrontation over the anti-government student movement, the media, universities and the overall political situation. Nikolic said she was initially apprehensive about debating a senior ruling-party official but welcomed the chance to present the Student List’s programme. She said her previous meetings with Brnabic at parliament’s Education Committee had been marked by confrontation, adding that the televised debate offered a chance for both sides to present their programmes. The appearance was notable because ruling SNS officials have largely avoided N1 during previous election campaigns and Brnabic last appeared in 2017. “To be honest, I was not particularly happy to come to N1 this time either, given the way your television station has, over the past ten years, engaged in what I see as the dehumanisation of my President and my friend,” Brnabic said. She accused N1 of having spread false information but said she had agreed to appear after Vucic encouraged her to give the television station “a chance”, following its change of management. The debate quickly became heated, including an exchange over Nikolic’s alleged refusal to shake Brnabic’s hand. The candidates also clashed over the student-led university blockades. Brnabic said students had been discriminated against “thanks to the Student List and the blockades”, while Nikolic accused her of promoting a misleading narrative about the protests and about how universities functioned. On education, Brnabic defended the SNS record in government, pointing to higher teachers’ salaries, increased education spending and investment in science and technology infrastructure. Nikolic challenged the figures, arguing that nominal salary increases did not necessarily mean education workers were better off, and questioned delays to university infrastructure projects. She also criticised Brnabic’s understanding of Serbia’s education system, telling her: “As a professor, I have to tell you – Ana, you failed, you failed the exam.” Nikolic said the Student List advocated free education, equal opportunities for students and teachers and the modernisation of the education system. The debate was the first in a series of thematic election debates announced by N1 ahead of the October 25 parliamentary election.