The divide between those “for” and “against” protests in Serbia is increasingly aligned with citizens’ geopolitical orientations. Drawing on research conducted by the Institute of Social Sciences, Junior Research Assistant at the Centre for Political Studies and Public Opinion, Sofija Ljubišić, highlighted in her lecture “The Structure of Political Polarization in Serbia: Student and Civic Protests 2024–2025” that political polarization can no longer be adequately explained by traditional social differences, but is instead increasingly shaped by broader foreign policy orientations.
The lecture focused on contemporary forms of political polarization in Serbia, with particular emphasis on the role of geopolitical orientations in shaping citizens’ political attitudes and behavior. The findings presented were based on survey data collected from a large and representative sample.
The results indicate that traditional socio-demographic factors – such as gender, level of education, or region of residence – no longer play a decisive role in explaining political divisions. Instead, geopolitical orientations emerge as the key factor.
The research shows that pro-European and regional orientations significantly increase the likelihood of supporting protests, while orientation toward Russia and China is strongly associated with their rejection. These findings point to deeper value-based and symbolic divisions that transcend conventional political and social categories.
The lecture further emphasized that political cleavages in Serbia are increasingly articulated through competing visions of political order. On the one hand, there is a participatory-democratic model linked to European integration processes; on the other, a sovereigntist approach that prioritizes stability and the preservation of state autonomy.
It was concluded that geopolitical preferences represent an important analytical framework for understanding contemporary political dynamics in Serbia, and that their further study may contribute to a deeper insight into the nature of political divisions and the potential for social change.
The lecture by Sofija Ljubišić was organized as part of a series introducing newly affiliated researchers at the Institute of Social Sciences.