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Serbian Progressive Party runs PM Vucic for president

Xinhua, February 18, 2017 Adjust font size:

Serbian Prime Mininster Aleksandar Vucic officially entered the presidential race after the Steering Committee of his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) unanimously adopted the proposal to make him a candidate on Friday.

The Steering Committee of SNS held a session at Sava Center congress hall, and Vucic accepted to be the candidate in a speech in front of hundreds of party delegates and journalists.

"Despite all problems and advices (not to run for president), I decided to accept the candidature for the president of Serbia, because Serbia doesn't have much time and those who destroyed the country mustn't return to power," he stressed, adding his opponents should belong to the political past.

The mandate of the incumbent president Tomislav Nikolic expires on May 20, while Serbian law proscribes that elections must be called for at least 90 days earlier and held at least 30 days after that.

Serbian mainstream media speculate, according to their sources, that the incumbent president Tomislav Nikolic might run for another term, but this was neither confirmed nor rejected by the president's office.

So far several candidatures have been announced by the opposition parties.

Serbian Radical party already announced the candidature of its leader Vojislav Seselj. While the Democratic Party decided to support former ombudsman Sasa Jankovic as an independent candidate.

Vuk Jeremic, former foreign minister of Serbia and the former president of the general assembly of the United Nations, also decided to be an independent candidate. Endit