Government spokesperson Kupka joined the
Civic Democratic Party (ODS) in 2008 and was elected to Líbeznice council with the second highest number of preferential votes among the top three on its candidate list. The party won a majority of 13 out of 15 seats in the council, and agreed to nominate Kupka for mayor. In 2010, under Petr Nečas' government, Kupka became a spokesman for the Czech government, but remained a member of Líbeznice council. Kupka was named a press spokesperson once in the category of state authorities in 2009. When the Council of the
Central Bohemian Region approved the plan to expand
Vodochody Airport, he betrayed the municipalities and experts. Kupka also criticised the EIA report on the effects of possible expansion, saying that its author did not deal with the comments by affected municipalities. However, the Central Bohemian Region Council re-assessed its position on the expansion of the airport, with the regional leadership having a negative opinion on the plan in 2013, which Kupka welcomed on behalf of the initiative. Kupka participated in the speedy completion of the Líbeznice Bypass after his election, but when the bypass was opened in July 2011, he admitted that there were traffic problems where drivers continued to drive through the center of the village. He stated: "When families choose a new place to live, they play a significant role in good transport services." Later, Kupka stated that he had disputes behind it with the then-head of the Civic Democratic Party, Petr Tluchoř. During the
2013 Czech parliamentary election, Kupka finished seventh place on the candidate list of the Central Bohemian Region for the Civic Democratic Party. While compiling the regional candidate list, he rejected the offers of possible regional candidates.
Civic Democratic Party Congress At the 24th Congress of the Civic Democratic Party on 18 January 2014, Kupka was elected vice chairman of the party after receiving 291 votes in the election. In the
2014 Czech municipal elections, he led the Civic Democratic Candidate as representative of the municipality of Líbeznice. Since the party won the municipal elections (72.48% of votes and 11 mandates), Kupka began his second term as mayor in November 2014. At the 27th Congress of the Civic Democratic Party in January 2016, Kupka defended the post of vice chairman of the party by receiving 343 votes from 463 delegates. He also defended his role at the 28th Civic Democratic Party Congress in January 2018, 29th Civic Democratic Congress in January 2020, and 30th Congress in April 2022.
2016—2018: Czech parliamentary and presidential elections In the
2016 Czech regional elections, Kupka was the leader of the ODS in the Central Bohemian Region and became a regional representative. In the
2017 Czech parliamentary election, Kupka was elected the Civic Democratic Party in the Central Bohemian Region. Due to his own experience with uncounted preferential votes for this candidate, preferential votes for ODS candidates believed that some ODS candidates may be unofficially elected as deputies. After recounting the votes on 19 November 2017, the court decided that Kupka became an MP instead of
Petr Bendl. In the Chamber of Deputies, he served as vice-chairman of the committee for public administration and regional development with
Jakub Janda and
Martin Baxa. In the
2018 Czech presidential election, Kupka defended the position of representative of the municipality of Líbeznice, when he led the ODS candidate. Later that November, he became mayor of Líbeznice.
Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic In the
2020 Czech regional elections, Kupka was the leader of the ODS candidate in the Central Bohemian Region. He eventually defended the mandate of the regional representative by receiving 13,434 preferential votes. The same year, on 16 November, Kupka also became the first deputy governor for road infrastructure. He resigned from his position and became the Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic in 2022. In the
2021 Czech parliamentary election, Kupka ran as a member of the Civic Democratic Party as the third place candidate of the
Spolu coalition in the Central Bohemian Region. He received 30,000 votes and defended the mandate. The same year, in November, Kupka became the ODS candidate for the post of Minister of Transport of the Czech Republic in Petr Fiala's cabinet. Later that December, President
Miloš Zeman appointed him to this position at
Lány Castle.
Leader of the Civic Democratic Party In 2025, Kupka announced his candidacy for the leadership of ODS, and
was elected as the party's fifth leader on 17 January 2026. ==Personal life==