Vučić to change Constitution to strengthen presidential position, Dačić to be PM?

The decision of the Presidency of the Serbian Progressive Party for Aleksandar Vučić to be their candidate for the President of Serbia was expected. All pre-election surveys so far have shown that this move will most likely avoid a second round of elections, given that the current prime minister enjoys enormous support from the citizens of the neighboring country, writes Patria.

At the same time, the current prime minister wants to test his popularity, i.e., the economic reforms supported by the International Monetary Fund, and Serbia's efforts to move closer to the European Union.

Vučić, as the candidate of the Serbian Progressive Party, of which he is the president, will face the candidates of the divided opposition.

Ivica Dačić, the president of the Socialist Party of Serbia, gave his support to Vučić even before his SNS proposed him as a candidate.

The leader of the Radicals, Vojislav Šešelj, recently stated that he would surely win if Tomislav Nikolić were SNS's candidate again, but that he would lose if Vučić ran.

Besides Šešelj, Vuk Jeremić and Saša Janković will also compete with Vučić, and two candidates from the diaspora, Vladimir Rajčić and Danijela Sremac, have also emerged.

Vučić's victory would present him, as the head of the strongest parliamentary party in Serbia, with the dilemma of whom to propose for prime minister.

Two months before the presidential elections, there is already much speculation about the name of Ivica Dačić, the current head of Serbian diplomacy and president of the SPS. Dačić was prime minister for a time, and Vučić was his deputy.

By giving blank support to Vučić for the presidential candidacy, Dačić, who is politically loyal to the prime minister, has already secured a prime ministerial or some other position in the new Serbian government for himself.

Vučić's party colleague, Minister of Internal Affairs Nebojša Stefanović, who, like Dačić, has shown his loyalty, is also in the running.

In an interview with RTS, Vučić, speaking last night among other things about himself as the already elected president, emphasized that in accordance with his constitutional powers, he will stand by the prime minister, whoever he may be, and help him in every possible way.

The question is how and to what extent the future prime minister, when Vučić is elected president, will have freedom in his actions, considering that the SNS has 131 out of 250 deputies in the National Assembly of Serbia. The parliamentary majority thus leaves Vučić a wide room for maneuver, so it should not be surprising if the prime minister, whether it is Dačić, Stefanović, or someone else, will only be an executor of his wishes and a spokesperson.

In addition, there is a great possibility for amendments to the Constitution of Serbia, through which Vučić would expand and strengthen presidential powers. In addition to his 131 deputies, in political bargaining, he would need to secure another 35 votes, which he can do with Dačić's 29 and Šešelj's 22 deputies. There are also smaller parties with two or three deputies, and it is known that in most cases they are the ones who make the final decision.

From the Program of the Serbian Progressive Party

The Serbian Progressive Party advocates for Serbia's entry into the European Union, as well as for close cooperation with the Russian Federation, the United States of America, China, Japan, and third countries that are becoming increasingly important drivers of global development.