EAPC Europe Conference 2026 Frankfurt:
40 Presentations Sparking New Thinking in Political Communication
Never before has an EAPC conference been so compact and so rich in content. To mark its 30th anniversary, the EAPC adopted a new conference concept that participants received with great enthusiasm: “As professionals have less and less time, we designed the conference as a single day, so that participants could arrive in the morning and fly back home that same evening. The short, focused presentations made for a lively atmosphere and densely packed information,” said conference organiser and EAPC President Reza Kazemi.
Liudmyla Kvirenko: “Russian Information Warfare in Ukraine: AI, Telegram and the Battle for Trust”
In her presentation, Liudmyla Kvirenko described how Russia is trying to destroy Ukrainians’ trust in their government from within through Telegram and AI-generated messages, and at the same time outlined counter-strategies.
Special Guest: Leopold Born, Secretary General of the CDU Hesse, on Election Promises and Keeping Them
Another highlight of the conference: Leopold Born, Secretary General of the CDU in Hesse, demonstrated impressively how election promises can be successfully made and kept in politics – even within a coalition. Above all, the key is not to let everything be destroyed by compromises, but to bring the best programmes of all parties involved together into one joint concept.
Meet Your New Campaign Manager: AI on Autopilot
Joachim Schaper, formerly in leadership positions at Porsche and SAP, has switched sides and supports start-ups in their development, with artificial intelligence and its sensible use at the heart of his work. Using examples, Joachim Schaper showed where AI is useful and where it is dangerous.
“Game Over? Don’t Blame the Voters”
In his presentation, Achim Moeller focused above all on the weakness of the traditional parties, which is one of the reasons for the rise of right-wing parties. “We have to learn again to be in direct contact with voters and to make policy together with them,” said Moeller. “If we keep blaming the voters, the game will be over tomorrow.”
Next Generation in Campaigning: Presentations by Michela Bettinelli, Michelle Ngwafon and Marya Negrouche
Michela Bettinelli from Italy, Michelle Ngwafon from the USA and Marya Negrouche from France presented new insights into campaign strategies and described how they reach different voter groups, particularly in local elections.
Four Tools, Four Impulses: Experts Present Their Software
The presentations by leading providers on the market offered a fascinating insight into the world of possibilities. Christoph Weidner, Germany, introduced “Conrad”, the campaign assistant. Bailey Greenspon, Canada, showed tools that take on valuable detailed work; Line Kristensen presented the latest developments at NationBuilder; and Yair Chen, Israel, presented tools that support campaigns from voter outreach all the way to election day.
World Premiere: EAPC Presents the University Programme “European Executive Master of Political Consultancy”
Over the past two years, the EAPC has developed a study programme together with the Lisbon Business & Government School and the Stirling Centre in Scotland, which is now ready to launch. Arnaldo Costeira, Vice President of the EAPC and Dean of the Lisbon Business & Government School, Alaa Garad, Head of the Stirling Centre, and Sepp Hartinger, co-lead of the programme, presented the details.
“Where the Profession Meets Next” with Josef Lentsch, Austria, and Sharaschandra Shankar Nag, IAPC
Josef Lentsch and Sharaschandra Shankar Nag got the conference participants in the mood for the next major events in political communication:
first, the conference at Vienna City Hall in October 2026, which has since taken place, and second, the next World Conference of the International Association of Political Consultants, taking place in Seville, Spain, in November.
“After the Election Is Before the Election”: Why Successful Campaigns Begin the Day After the Election
In his presentation, Strahil Karapchanski, Bulgaria, outlined an old piece of wisdom that is unfortunately rarely put into practice. New techniques make the process easier – but the secret of success lies in close contact with voters.
30 Years of EAPC: Looking Back and Looking Ahead
The EAPC Europe Conference closed with the Founders’ Panel featuring Sepp Hartinger, Austria, Volker Riegger, Germany, and Mehmet Ural, Turkey, moderated by Susanne Hartinger, also a founding member. The panel looked back briefly on the many activities of the past 30 years and, above all, on the enormous changes, while also offering an outlook on future approaches.
“Besides fair communication, the most important task is above all to safeguard and strengthen democracy and human rights,” said the founders, who closed the conference by cutting a large birthday cake for all participants.
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