President of Serbia, that is. According to reporting by N1, Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Janković was this close to accepting the post of prime minister of Serbia. Apparently, he backed out at the last minute. This was later confirmed by Serbian president Aleksandar Vučić himself.
Following this bombshell, rumours started swirling that Janković remains in the mix for a high-level position in Serbian administration, possibly even as successor to Aca Vučić, when his presidential term expires in 2027. Talk about an exit strategy…
At this point both readers are probably thinking what the fuck is wrong with Janković to even entertain such an idea? Let alone already accepting the offer, only to back out at the last moment.
Non-denial denial
To be clear, Zoran Janković did not confirm Vučić’s account of the events. But he didn’t exactly deny it, either. Specifically, when asked point-blank about it, he said he has no idea why Aleksandar Vučić said what he said and that the media should ask the Serbian president about it. A classic non-denial denial.
Several things stand out immediately. First and foremost, the mayor, who usually relishes the media spotlight, even on controversial subjects, actively avoided journalist’ questions over the past couple of days. Especially questions fromN1. And when he did step in front of cameras last night, he did so on POP TV, in a one-on-one interview.
Speaking to the competition on an issue N1 had an exclusive on, was Janković giving the middle finger to the outlet. And seeing how in Serbia, N1 often finds itself at the business end of Aleksandar Vučić’s propaganda machine, Janković signalling that he still considers himself Aca’s ally, even though predsedniče left him nursing a giant turd.
Succession of Zoran Janković
And he continued to nurse this turd on today’s regularly scheduled press conference, when he again evaded a point-blank answer. Which suggests he is trying to keep his options open. pengovsky sometimes quips that Zoki will leave City Hall either in a coffin or in handcuffs. But apparently, the idea of entering Serbian politics is tantalizing enough that he is not dismissing it.
However, this is where things get complicated.
While Janković may be taking his sweet time, Vučić is in a hurry. The student protest movement refuses to go away and for the first time in… checks notes … ever, the Serbian president seems at a loss as to how to navigate the crisis. He had to appoint a PM, any PM, to avoid a snap election. And avoiding an election in a system as rigged as Serbian goes a long way in showing just how unsure of his position Vučić really is.
But if Zoran Janković dropped everything and rushed to help his friend in a way that goes beyond writing letters in a dubious capacity, he’d have left himself wide open on the Ljubljana front, his team leaderless, the city suddenly rudderless.
The last time he did that, the entire operation reportedly descended into administrative turf wars within a matter of weeks,. And that happened even though he had a backup plan. Had he jumped ship and joined Team Vučić overnight, you can bet the farm on the entire city administration and its political class to go into meltdown.
Time is in short supply for Aleksandar Vučić
So, the takeaway here is that Janković seems to be intrigued by Vučić’s offer but has to come up with a succession plan back home. And, as is usual in such cases, there is no heir(ess) apparent.
Which is why the scenario where Zoki foregoes the PM post in favour of running for Serbian president in 2027 seems more than just a little plausible. This way, he’d have ample time to pick a substitute mayor, steer them unto victory, hand in the city key in late 2026 (at least formally), and still be able to campaign for 2027 vote in Serbia.
But from Aleksandar Vučić’s perspective, this is all taking too long. Which is why it was probably no coincidence that predsedniče let it slip the other day there are no legal restrictions on Janković running for high office, seeing how the mayor also holds Serbian citizenship.
The tale of two passports
Which was news to many people, including Zoran Janković himself. For all the evasiveness of the last couple of days, this was the one thing he did strenuously deny. To be exact, the mayor said he doesn’t hold Serbian citizenship but that he could obtain it easily, being born in Serbia and whatnot.
True or false, the idea of Janković holding dual citizenship would have (will?) play poorly in Slovenia. Not because it would be a legal issue (it is not), but because it presents a surprisingly effective cudgel to beat the mayor with, in lieu of actual policy alternatives. You see, Ljubljana may be liberal and tolerant, but it is not that liberal and tolerant. Not when the mayor seems a bit past his due date.
And so Vučić just may have tried nudging Janković into making a call sooner rather than later. Ironically, this is the sort of thing Janković usually does to other people. Pre-empting their decisions, painting them into a corner and then daring them to walk away, left with nothing. It usually works with folks who are ambitious or brown-nosing enough. Or both.
Alternatively, Vučić may be pissed with Janković for not going the whole nine yards for him. Maybe he inserted this tidbit into the narrative as revenge, complicating Janković’s political future. After all, the mayor did feel the need to deny this straight away. If this really is the case, it is petty as fuck. But it also demonstrates that Aleksandar Vučić understands Ljubljana and Muddy Hollows politics beyond what was generally assumed.
Non-zero chances
But regardless of which of the two scenarios is closer to reality (maybe a bit of both?), here we have two people who consider themselves apex political predators and neither is accustomed to playing second fiddle. A functional and fortuitous relationship this would not be. It would serve their immediate purposes, but little beyond that.
So while the odds of Zoran Janković leaving City Hall neither in a coffin nor in handcuffs, but with with diplomatic immunity are not exactly zero, chances of a mayor Janković instead of president Janković are still overwhelmingly high.
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