BELGRADE, Serbia-A nationalist now standing trial in The Hague for alleged war crimes leads his party's list of candidates for key May parliamentary elections, officials said Wednesday.

Vojislav Seselj still formally leads the highly popular Serbian Radical Party, despite proceedings against him at the U.N. court in the Netherlands.

The Radicals' list of candidates for the 250-member parliament, submitted late Tuesday, has Seselj at the top, despite his indictments for atrocities committed during the Balkan wars of the 1990s.

U.N. prosecutors say Seselj, whose Radicals ruled with late ex-strongman Slobodan Milosevic, gave hate-laced speeches as part of an overarching scheme to send paramilitaries to Croatia and Bosnia to ethnically cleanse regions of non-Serbs.

Seselj voluntarily surrendered to the tribunal five years ago. He has denied the charges and has launched an own defense before the Hague court.

Seselj's party remains highly popular in Serbia and could win power at the May 11 parliamentary vote where the nationalists are facing off against a pro-Western party.

The nationalists have gained strength from growing frustration over Western recognition of the independence of Kosovo, which split from Serbia on Feb. 17 over Belgrade's objections. Serbia, which considers Kosovo its historic and religious heartland, refuses to accept Pristina's move.

The May elections were called after the coalition government collapsed over Serbia's response to Kosovo's independence.

Nationalists are demanding that Serbia abandon its bid to become an EU member until the bloc acknowledges that Kosovo remains a part of Serbia. The pro-Western camp argues that Serbia must strive for EU membership regardless of Kosovo.

The May election is considered the most important vote in Serbia since Milosevic was ousted from power in 2000.