Boris Tadic, presidential candidate of the coalition "Choice for a Better Life," said Thursday that the May 20 election was a referendum on where Serbia was headed, on the future of the country and the region.

"May 20 is a referendum on whether Serbia is headed to the EU or is wavering on that path. It is a referendum on our future, the future of our region, on where Serbia should go," Tadic said at a final convention held at the Belgrade Arena.

Tadic noted that over the past decade, the DS had managed to reconcile both powers within Serbia, and Serbia with the region and the world.

Today we have the support of all of Europe, because we made an effort to reconcile both Serbia and the region, and have offered a hand to everyone, he said, adding this was something he would keep doing.

"This is why today Serbia can proudly say it is one of the pillars of stability in the Balkans," said Tadic.

Democratic Party presidential candidate Boris Tadic promised in Belgrade on May 17 that if he wins the election, Serbia will profit from high economic growth, albeit "not everything will be as in a fairy tale" and that some tough measures would have to be taken.

"New challenges lie ahead of us and it would be unfair to say that everything will go smoothly, yet we have the courage to take tough measures," Tadic said at a final party electoral convention in a jam-packed Arena in Belgrade.

Tadic also announced social dialog with trade unions, saying that development called for constant reforms of the education system and more investment in education and science, as these areas were the only roads leading to economic growth.

"We must fight for new jobs, this is the struggle that the entire world is dealing with, the struggle of our era," Tadic said, adding that only integration with the EU could secure the investment dynamics required for new jobs.

"This is why we are heading towards the EU, for the future of our children. We want to the Balkans to be similar to Scandinavia in regard to peace, and we have already been commended for that," Tadic said.