Populist Serbian president resigning to run for prime minister in snap election

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has resigned, ending his second and final five-year term, seven months before it was set to expire. According to the Jerusalem Post, Vucic's resignation paves the way for early presidential elections and allows him to potentially become prime minister if his Serbian Progressive Party forms the new government.

Vucic announced his intention to resign as president earlier in the summer, and his supporters cheered him in front of the Presidency building in Belgrade's city center. He told the crowd that he had "faithfully served" Serbia and was proud of what they had achieved together.

Under Serbia's constitution, outgoing parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic will serve as interim president until a new one is elected. The presidential election must be completed within 90 days, with the campaign lasting between 30 and 60 days, and is expected to take place by the end of December. Vucic's plan to switch roles has been compared to that of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who stayed in power by spending a four-year stint as prime minister to dodge presidential term limits, as reported by the National Post.

Brief written by urgent.news from National Post, Jerusalem Post — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.