Unhack Democracy
Budget
€25 — €0
EP Access
0
accredited persons
Staff
4
2.25 FTE
EU Grants
None
Mission & Goals
Unhack Democracy is a Brussels-based election watchdog and pro-democracy NGO. Set up in 2018 to rebuild trust in elections in Hungary and beyond, today our diverse team of journalists, academics and entrepreneurs works to make civil society braver, more creative and hopeful, presenting a positive vision of why democracy - and those who defend it - matter.
EU Legislative Interests
The European Democracy Shield (EDS) The EU Digital Services Act (DSA) EU Strategy for Civil Society
Communication Activities
ACTIVITIES Since the start of 2024, Unhack Democracy's flagship programme has been the Rewire your mind, Rewire your country (REWIRE) hope-based mindset shift incubator targeting rising civil society leaders from Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria and Ukraine. In-person and online trainings, co-designed by Hope-based Communications, for 20 activists working across rule of law, elections, civic education and minority rights, have led to peer-to-peer trainings and development of ‘prototype’ tools, services and campaigns to improve the democratic space and foster cross-border collaboration. A public online expert series on Ukraine has focused on the role of civil society in national defence and vision building. https://www.unhackdemocracy.eu/en/home/rewire Our Talking Heads project - supported by The Civics Innovation Fund - uses AI so civic educators can reach beyond engaged elite bubbles and have video conversations with the public at scale. https://www.unhackdemocracy.eu/en/home/talkingheads-82llt In it’s role as an election watchdog, Unhack continues to monitor elections in Hungary, having been active across all elections (national, EP, and municipal) dating back to the 2018 Parliamentary elections: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/breaking-fresh-evidence-hungary-vote-rigging-raises-concerns-fraud-european-elections/ Unhack Democracy successfully coordinated with other pro-democracy groups in Hungary ahead of the April 2022 Hungarian parliamentary elections to secure a full ODIHR Election Observation Mission: https://www.dw.com/de/ungarn-osze-mission-gegen-wahlbetrug/a-60377568 From 2026-2028, Unhack is partnering on Democracy, Inclusion, Voter Engagement (DIVE) project coordinated by Europäischer Austausch gGmbH, and financed under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) FPA/SGA mechanism. Unhack Democracy's Count for Democracy! campaigns include: Volunteer poll workers’ training and e-learning platform based on Unhack Democracy’s research and over 1000 testimonies from ballot counters gathered across multiple elections. Election Health Check: a transnational video project facilitated by Unhack Democracy and supported by the European Cultural Foundation’s Cultural Solidarity Fund and the Friedrich Naumann Foundation’s Global Themes Division. A collaboration between NGOs and artists in Hungary, North-Macedonia, and Serbia, the video series informed viewers of their civic rights to empower them to actively take part in the democratic process while advocating for solidarity and systematic change to protect electoral integrity. Europe for Citizens Program: “European voters - together for electoral integrity”. Led by the Berlin-based European Platform for Democratic Elections, the project, financed by the European Commission brought together citizen election observation organizations from seven EU member states (with Unhack representing Hungary) united in the effort to contribute to fair and transparent elections both on a national and European level. Central European University’s Open University in Budapest: the course, taught by co-founders of Unhack and Professor Gabor Toka of CEU, explores the following questions: How can election observation and vote counting correct the failures of the electoral system? Votes without Borders: Led by Romanian investigative journalism outlet Átlátszó Erdély (Transylvania), Votes without Borders investigated the voting registration process of Hungarians living in neighbouring countries and monitored the election campaign in these communities. Unhack Democracy provided training and ongoing supervision to journalists working on the project. Unhack has also hosted an international conference in Budapest on Strengthening Electoral Integrity in Europe.
Interests Represented
Promotes their own interests or the collective interests of their members
Member Of
Unhack Democracy is a member of the European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE), which aims to support citizen election observation and to contribute to democratic election processes throughout Europe. https://www.epde.org/en/Countries/Hungary.html Unhack Democracy is also a member of Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors (GNDEM) and signatory of the Declaration of Global Principles for Nonpartisan Election Observation and Monitoring by Citizen Organizations.
Organisation Members
N/A
Commissioner Meetings
No recorded meetings with EU commissioners.