Serbia’s president, Aleksandar Vucic, may not be standing in Sunday’s parliamentary elections himself. But his image and name are front and centre of his party’s campaign.
His ostensibly pro-EU but ideologically elusive Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) have enjoyed a series of victories since they first took office in 2012.
While he is no longer officially the party’s leader, President Vucic has been the dominant figure in Serbian politics for the past decade. And the election campaign reflects that.
“All of the [opposition parties], the only programme that they have to offer is: ‘Aleksandar Vucic is bad, he’s a tyrant, he’s an autocrat’,” says Prime Minister Ana Brnabic.
She is also an SNS member, and not at all shy about making the connection with the president – repeatedly referring to Mr Vucic during an interview with the BBC.
The message seems clear: a vote for the Progressives is a vote for Mr Vucic.
Rasa Nedeljkov, who is programme director of the election monitor CRTA (the Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability), says the focus on the president is problematic.
“60% of people think Vucic is the candidate – whether in the national or the local elections. It’s a huge deception.”