Sam van der Staak is the Director of International IDEA’s Europe Programme, and Head of Mission to the EU. His work focuses on responding to democratic developments in Europe, with a special emphasis on the topics of money in politics and ICT in democracy.

Sam collaborates closely with all EU institutions on major democracy files. He does so within the EU, the EU-neighborhood, as well as globally. Sam engages daily with electoral commissions, parliaments, civil society and academia on democratic developments across Europe. Apart from heading International IDEA's representation in Brussels, he oversees International IDEA multiple country offices in Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans. He manages a sizeable portfolio of donor programmes, as well as multiple teams across Europe. 

Sam has been involved in International IDEA publications on cybersecurity in elections, citizen movements, money in politics, and political party dialogue. He has been a visiting researcher at SciencesPo university and makes regular media contributions to media outlets, including Politico, BBC, New York Times, Le Monde, Le Figaro. Sam is a Dutch national and has lived in Stockholm, Johannesburg, Tokyo, The Hague, and Brussels. 

Engage with Sam van der Staak on LinkedIn at @sam-van-der-staak

Recent Op-Eds:

Europe, Stand Up for Democracy Worldwide, Green European Journal, 6 January 2026.

Europe should use its mega-deals to turn the democratic malaise (with Kevin Arceneaux) Euractiv, 16 August 2025.

Von der Leyen should make democracy the cornerstone of the EU’s security agenda, Friends of Europe, 15 September 2024.

In her State of the Union, von der Leyen should swap pragmatism for principles, Politico, 12 September 2023.

Voter Turnout Will Decide Europe’s Fate, Project Syndicate, 20 May 2019.

What populists get right, Politico (Europe Edition), 25 June 2018.

Don’t believe the hype. The Dutch election will be a vote for business as usual., The Washington Post (DemocracyPost),14 March 2017.