Ursula von der Leyen’s political guidelines cite security, prosperity, and democracy as overarching priorities for the next five years. This emphasis appears appropriate, considering that the quality of democracy has been declining significantly across Europe in the past decade. But while democracy is named as a priority, von der Leyen’s proposed action in this area for the next legislative period is limited: democracy is framed mostly as a security issue, with threats stemming from hostile foreign actors in the online information space. This approach risks disproportionately occupying attention that leave other, internal threats to democracy in the EU unaddressed or deprioritised. This paper proposes four areas for action over the next legislative period to more effectively and comprehensively address the risks that European democracy currently faces. First, the Commission should re-evaluate its current legislative agenda for fostering democracy. Second, it should support civil society organisations, human rights defenders and independent journalists, including through funding. Third, it should make use of the available financial tools to protect the EU budget. Fourth, it should contribute to devising and protecting minimum standards for democracy.