Digital Civic Circles Cross Into Real Life with First National Meeting

On September 20, the first national gathering of the Digital Civic Circles will take place. The circles were created following Viktor Orban’s announcement at Tusvanyos, with the goal of building an online community dedicated to defending Hungarian culture, language and identity. More than 70,000 people have already joined the initiative, including public figures, artists, athletes and scientists.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban with members of the first Digital Civic Circle (DPK) (Photo: Prime Minister’s Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)

The September 20 event will be hosted by Philip Rakay and actress Zsofi Szabo. In his Tusvanyos speech in July, Prime Minister Viktor Orban described the launch of the Digital Civic Circles (DPK) as a new chapter in Hungary’s online public life. The project aims to build a digital community to defend Hungarian cultural identity in the online space.

Fighters’ Club or Digital Civic Circle?

According to the prime minister, a proactive, warrior presence is needed online, which is why the “Fighters’ Club” was established. Alongside it, the Digital Civic Circles were launched, modeled partly on Hungary’s traditional, offline civic circles. These serve as a stable, secure base—or even a “safe space”—for those who are are less suited for direct confrontation. Within the circles, communities can organize and people with different interests but a shared national outlook can connect more easily.

PM Orban himself is a member of the very first Digital Civic Circle, along with:

• Erika Miklosa, opera singer
• Elek Nagy, businessman
• Bence Partos, psychologist
• Balazs Baji, hurdler
• Janos Nagy, state secretary
• Andras Lanczi, philosopher
• Laszlo “Dopeman” Pityinger, rapper
• Roland Jakab, CEO of the Hungarian Research Network (HUN-REN) 
• Zsuzsa Mathe, journalist
• Mor Ban, writer
• Maria Schmidt, historian
• Philip Rakay, producer
• Katalin Balatoni, education researcher
• Adam Kavecsanszki, president–director general of Foundation for a Civic Hungary (PMA)

Since then, many more DPKs have been created, with over 70,000 registered members according to the official website. Fidesz parliamentary group leader Mate Kocsis even founded his own Digital Civic Circle, named “Zebra,” aimed at fighting fake news. The name is a tongue-in-cheek response to opposition Tisza Party chief Peter Magyar’s repeated false claims that Viktor Orban keeps zebras.

How to Join a Digital Civic Circle

Anyone interested can join an existing circle—or propose creating a new one—through the website dpk.hu. New circle proposals are reviewed by the organizers, who notify applicants of the outcome.

Training Camp for the Fighters

The upcoming Digital Civic Circle gathering follows the success of last weekend’s Fighters’ Club training camp in Satoraljaujhely, which was oversubscribed several times over. Participants there met with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Minister of Construction and Transport Janos Lazar, the PM's political director Balazs Orban, and Fidesz–KDNP communications director Tamas Menczer.

Following that success, PM Orban and his team have already announced the next Fighters’ Club training camp, to be held October 18–19 in Zanka.

The Fighters’ Club regularly organizes such camps for its members, featuring exclusive events, social media training, educational lectures, team-building activities, and networking opportunities. Participation is free for members, though spaces are limited.

Cover photo: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban with members of the first Digital Civic Circle (DPK) (Photo: Prime Minister’s Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)

További játékainkhoz kattintson ide!