Europe’s Democracy Shield: What Measures for Political Tech?

Reinventing parties, new European measures, and citizen-centred politics.

Dear {{ contact.VORNAME | default : "all" }},

Europe is taking a stand. Last week, the European Commission unveiled the European Democracy Shield, a first-of-its-kind initiative to make political technology work for fair, transparent, and secure elections.

In this issue, we break down the five key pillars of the Democracy Shield, show how D66 pulled off a historic comeback in the Netherlands, and explore how civic tech is putting citizens back at the centre of political decision-making.

How the Dutch Party D66 Reinvented Itself

📍 Online 🗓️ Thursday, 4 December 2025

🕔 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM CEST

D66’s historic 2025 comeback surprised many observers, showing how a party can reinvent itself even in a highly polarised and digitally fragmented landscape.

In this Deep Dive, Afke Groen of the Mr. Hans van Mierlo Stichting will unpack how D66 achieved this feat by starting where few parties dare to begin: with a clear-eyed, courageous internal review of what had gone wrong. Building on a renewal methodology first forged in the 2006 crisis, D66 again combined ideological recalibration, internal talent activation, narrative redesign, and organisational rebuilding—but adapted each element to the new political reality.

Europe's Democracy Shield: Political Tech Measures

Last week, the European Commission officially launched their European Democracy Shield: Europe’s first integrated effort to make political tech work for fair, secure elections.

In 5 points, here’s how it offers concrete tools to protect elections online:

Rapid-response to disinformation: Early-warning systems to tackle online manipulation, including deepfakes.

AI guidance for campaigns: Rules to ensure transparency and responsible use of algorithmic targeting.

Platform accountability: Obligations for tech platforms to act against large-scale disinformation under the Digital Services Act.

Civic tech & media literacy: Tools and education to help citizens navigate the digital political landscape.

European Centre for Democratic Resilience: A hub coordinating technical monitoring and responses to digital threats.

Learn more

This Platform Transcribes, Analyses, and Channels Citizen Deliberations to Policymakers

Check out our latest guest piece on how political technologies are putting citizens back at the centre of decision-making.

👉 Democratising Political Tech: Why political technologies need practitioner and citizen oversight.

In this guest article, deliberAIde — a Berlin‑based AI platform that supports civic dialogue from planning to reporting — dive into how their human‑centred technology helps organisers capture in‑person, online, or hybrid discussions, anonymise and transcribe them, and then turn them into structured insights.

Got an idea for the blog? We’re looking for contributors! If you have something to say about political tech, pitch us your idea. We’d love to hear from you!

Drop us a line at contact@partisan.community to pitch an idea.

Read the article

📢 Open calls

Job alert: Technology & Democracy Lead at the Evens Foundation

Ready to build the tools, partnerships, and ideas that will define digital democracy in Europe?

The Evens Foundation is looking for a Technology & Democracy Lead to build the tools and partnerships that strengthen democratic systems online. Lead projects, shape public debate, advise on AI and civic tech, and build a high-impact team from scratch.

Apply