about
About us
Unhack Democracy is a pro-democracy NGO and election watchdog that works to counter fake democracies in Europe by fostering active public-spirited citizens, politicians and businesses.
Founded in 2018 to safeguard the integrity of elections through cross-disciplinary and cross-border collaboration, today Unhack Democracy aims to help make civil society more resilient and effective by presenting a positive vision of why democracy - and those who defend it - matters.
The definition of ‘unhack’ is to “restore a broken system to a functional state or revert the effects of a security breach”. Our goal is to uncover these democratic security breaches by state actors and bring about innovative citizen-led solutions to restore the system.
Unhack Democracy is a registered non-profit in Belgium comprised of a diverse team of data analysts, policy experts, journalists, artists, academics and entrepreneurs. It is a member of the European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE) and the Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors (GNDEM).
Civic education
Citizen engagement and mobilisation is at the core of our work. Educating voters on the threats to democracy and providing them with the training to take a more active role in safeguarding elections is key to countering voter apathy and anger. Talking about ‘democracy’ can often seem abstract but by bringing pro-democracy civil society and artistic groups together we hope to entertain, educate and activate voters and encourage greater political participation.
Investigations
Researching democratic rollback and identifying trends of voter fraud and irregularities on election day is integral to our cross-disciplinary practice. Academics and data analysts make up the core of our team, conducting qualitative and quantitative investigations into elections at a local, national and European level.
Advocacy
Protecting electoral integrity cannot just come from below. Our advocacy programme focuses on the need for lawmakers, EU institutions and international bodies to re-think election observation in supposedly democratic countries. Key to this is raising awareness of the major threats to elections and electoral integrity within Europe, ensuring the safe conduct of domestic observers and promoting greater dialogue between democratic institutions and civil society.