Belgrade - Serb politicians finally were muzzled by a media blackout ahead of Sunday's snap elections, ending a marathon campaign that was the dirtiest since the era of Slobodan Milosevic and left voters weary. Scrambling for votes in the wake of Kosovo's Western-backed split from Serbia, nationalist leaders from the governing coalition pumped up the "patriotic" rhetoric before campaigning stopped Friday, branding their former pro-European allies as traitors.
The anti-Western bloc, including the surging ultra-nationalist opposition Serbian Radical Party (SRS) and outgoing Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica's coalition, wants Serbia to turn away from EU aspirations in protest at Western backing for Kosovo.
Pro-Europeans, led by President Boris Tadic and his Democratic Party (DS), insist that Serbia must remain on a Western course.
"You betrayed Kosovo, and now it hurts you when we call you traitors. Well, we don't have a different word. Boris is a traitor," said Kostunica's coalition partner and cabinet minister Velimir Ilic.
Kostunica's government fell in March after splitting over Kosovo's independence, prompting Sunday's early parliamentary elections. Serbs voted for a new president only in February.
Tadic signed a Stabilization and Association Agreement with European Union in April, drawing fire from Kostunica's nationalists who called it a backoor recognition of Kosovo and vowed to revoke the deal after the election.
Kostunica appears to be drifting to a coalition with SRS, which has been tipped to remain the strongest single bloc in parliament after May 11.
Traditionally among the most belligerent speakers, SRS leader Tomislav Nikolic this time watered down the rhetoric, refusing to cut Europe off and throwing in easy promises of close ties with Russia, work for everybody and many
