Photo: N1On Thursday, September 4, two months expired during which, according to the Law on Local Self-Government, the Assembly of Zaječar should have been constituted
The period of two months during which, according to the Law on local government it is mandatory that the assembly of a local self-government be constituted in the case Zaječara it expired on Thursday, September 4, so according to the explanation of political scientist Boban Stojanović, new elections in Zaječar would have to be called by October 4.
Stojanović explained on the X social network why this is so, recalling that the court annulled the decision on the verification of the mandate of councilors of the Assembly of Zaječar, which means that currently no one has a confirmed mandate in the city assembly.
"The election of the president of the assembly and the secretary, which is a condition for the constitution of the assembly, was voted by people whose mandates have not been verified," said Stojanović.
What do the laws say?
He pointed out that according to the Law on Local Elections, the deadline for holding the constituent session is 30 days from the publication of the decision on the allocation of mandates. That decision was published on July 11, which means that on August 10 the deadline for holding the constitutive session expired, because the president of the assembly and the secretary were not elected by the councilors whose mandate was verified.
"However, the Law on Local Elections does not foresee what happens if 30 days pass from the awarding of the mandate without a constituent session being held. On the other hand, the Law on Local Self-Government in Article 87 states that if the assembly is not constituted within two months of the publication of the election results (published on July 4), a temporary body is to be appointed and new elections are called within one month of the assembly being constituted," said Stojanović.
He also stated that the Law on Local Self-Government gives two months for the constitution of the assembly and prescribes consequences if this does not happen, unlike the Law on Local Elections which gives one month for constitution, but without consequences.
SNS is making new illegal decisions
Stojanović wrote that he expected that the SNS would repeat the constitutive session on Wednesday, September 3, and refer to the Law on Local Self-Government, but he stated that "however, they are making new illegal decisions."
He added that on Thursday, September 4, according to the Law on Local Self-Government, the condition is acquired that the assembly has not been constituted for two months and that by October 4, "new elections must be announced so that they are held within 30 to 60 days from the date of the announcement, potentially in Negotin and Mionica".
"Additionally, it is important to say that the decision of the High Court is legally binding and extraordinary legal remedies provided for by the law governing administrative disputes (Article 66 of the Law on Local Elections) cannot be filed against it," concluded Stojanović.
About everything in Zaječar:
The court annulled the decision on the verification of the mandate, which means that currently no one has a confirmed mandate in the city assembly.
The election of the president of the assembly and the secretary (a condition for constituting the assembly) was voted by people whose mandates were not verified - it means nothing.
— Boban Stojanović (@Radoholicar) September 3, 2025
Opposition: The High Court has had its say
The higher court in Zaječar issued a verdict declaring the constitutive session of the Assembly of the city of Zaječar held on August 6 as illegitimate.
Representatives of SNS ignored the court's decision and continued with the session on Wednesday, September 3, and after a full-day discussion with the opposition councilors, the president of Zaječar municipality, Stefan Zankov, whose mandate was canceled by the court, said that the session was postponed until further notice.
Opposition councilor and MP Dragana Rašić pointed out that the High Court had its say and that the decision is binding for everyone.
"The SNS is trying to justify its failures. They have not managed since the appointment of the constitutive session and the verification commission. It is not the same to assign mandates and confirm mandates. The allocation of mandates is done by GIK, and the confirmation of mandates is done by the verification commission. The verification commission did not agree that it should give the green light for the session that cannot start until the mandates are verified in order to elect the other bodies of the City Assembly," Rašić told N1.
It is more realistic to call new elections
Rašić believes that the most realistic thing is for the Government of Serbia to form a temporary body that will prepare the ground for the President of the Assembly to call new local elections.
"It is about the fact that they committed legal violence. They chose the president of the Assembly and the secretary and the mayor and the deputy mayor. They had no right to that. Legally, only the Constitutional Court is left to them, but the most realistic thing is for the government to form a temporary body that will call new elections. Stefan Zankov must distinguish the executive from the judicial power. They are trying to prevent new elections, which is not possible. We consulted lawyers who said that the only way to form a temporary body is to call new elections. That is what should happen. Disobeying the court's decision is a criminal offense," Rašić concluded.
Columns of citizens headed towards Slavija from six directions - from Novi Belgrade, Zemun and Čukarica, and a little later, columns also started from Studentski trg, from the building of the technical faculty on Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra and from Autokomanda.
The famous Hungarian sociologist Balint Magyar talks about the mafia state for the new "Vreme". How the new election winners can overthrow that system
The message of the last gathering of the Student List before the elections on October 25 is: It's over! It's a little retro, but considering who it's related to, it hits the spot
The "Students are winning" list held a final pre-election rally on Belgrade's Trg Slavija ahead of the extraordinary parliamentary elections scheduled for Sunday, October 25.
"They tried to destroy our country on an external order. Huge money entered the country and that's why this is the most difficult battle, because they attacked us with billions of euros, and we defended ourselves with purity, our program and love for the homeland," said Aleksandar Vučić at the final pre-election meeting in Belgrade's Hall of Sports
There is, literally, no difference between the one who claims it is day in the middle of the night, or the one who claims to be a giraffe, from the claims we read on billboards: that Vučić is working to unify Serbs and that Serbia is doing better and better day by day.
The pre-election arrests due to the alleged "overthrow of the state" testify to the regime's panic. The bad news for them is - they can't arrest the whole people who decided to defend themselves from progressive beatings and election theft
The ring that tightens around Ćaciland Student list is getting narrower. Because there are more and more spoiled people who see the false prophet for what he is: a street obscener who is fighting Serbia
The archive of the weekly Vreme includes all our digital editions, since the very beginning of our work. All issues can be downloaded in PDF format, by purchasing the digital edition, or you can read all available texts from the selected issue.
See all
