The political scene in Montenegro seems to have turned a page on Sunday, with the defeat of the veteran Milo Djukanovic – after three decades of a monopoly in the small Balkan country – by the new politician Jakov Milatovic.

The outcome of the second round of the presidential election may prove to be decisive in the tiny Adriatic state. It could weigh on snap parliamentary elections on June 11, after months of political deadlock, with the government simply tasked with running day-to-day affairs.

According to estimates by the non-governmental organization CeMI, based on results from almost all polling stations, Mr. Milatovic, a 36-year-old economist with a close relationship with the European Union, received about 60% of the vote, compared to 40% for the outgoing head of state. .

“Montenegro chose and I respect its choice,” Mr. Djukanovic said, acknowledging his defeat. “I want Milatovic to become a successful president, because that will mean that Montenegro will become a successful country.”

On the streets in Podgorica and other cities, supporters of the Europe Now candidate set off fireworks and flares and honked their car horns in celebration.

Mr. Djukanovic has been a dominant figure on the political scene in Montenegro for over thirty years, occupying the position of prime minister or president.

This is the heaviest defeat he has ever suffered personally, after the historic defeat of his party, the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), in the previous parliamentary elections in 2020. Since then, the country has been reeling from crisis to crisis and two governments have fallen.

Mr. Milatovitch spoke about the defeat of the ancien régime. He proclaims that Montenegro will become “more reconciled, richer, fairer.”

Milo Djukanovic took the country’s helm in 1991, at the age of 29, with the support of Belgrade’s one-time strongman Slobodan Milosevic, as the bloodshed that would tear the former Yugoslavia apart began.

As Serbia was being turned into an international pariah by the West, he distanced himself. He reached out to the West, broke with Belgrade, secured Montenegrin independence in a referendum in 2006. The country joined NATO, became a candidate for European Union membership, and moved out of Russia’s sphere of influence.

But his opponents accuse him personally of clientelism, favoritism, widespread corruption — and even ties to organized crime. The interested party denies all these accusations.

“Tonight, together with all citizens, we decisively said goodbye to crime, corruption, and the links between crime, corruption and politics in Montenegro,” said Jakov Milatovic in his victory speech.

Mr Djukanovic has based much of his campaign on questioning the sincerity of his opponent and the Europe Now movement, arguing that the other side is vulnerable to Serbian influence.

Mr. Milatovic countered that “the number one priority for Montenegro is full integration into the European Union.” He declares that he is favorably disposed to “good relations with Serbia and with all the countries of the Western Balkans”.

For years, Mr. Djukanovic has sought to limit Serbian influence and build a distinct national identity. Something not exactly easy in a country where more than 200,000 of the 620,000 inhabitants, more than a third, declare themselves Serbs.

Mr Milatovic, economic development minister in the first government formed after the 2020 elections, left a post at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to take up the ministry.

For some populists, the father of three was one of the founders in 2022 of the Europe Now movement. He became popular thanks to a controversial economic program that almost doubled the minimum wage to 450 euros.

For many voters, this year’s election has at stake the improvement of economic conditions in Montenegro, which is plagued, like other Balkan countries, by the mass exodus of its youth.

The official results will be announced in the next few days.