Outside a sportswear shop on the outskirts of Novi Sad, Serbia’s second city, there’s a hoarding of a body builder. Owing to the speed of my taxi I can’t be sure this is a promotion for a fashion label: there’s still a chance the bloke in the picture is in fact an election candidate.

Many citizens, including my taxi driver, don’t seem interested in talking politics, but as a visitor to the country the election is hard to escape. City centres, motorways and even, rather illogically, the airport are plastered in party billboards. And despite a wide variety of options, most bear similar images, often of men looking macho in front of national symbols or scenery. Continue reading →