The World's Democratic Decline

The Elected Democracy Index constructed by Our World in Data (OWID) indicates that the world has become less democratic in recent years.

  • According to OWID estimates in 2021 countries received an electoral-democracy score of 0.51 on the scale from 0 to 1. This score is slightly lower than the highest ever average of electoral democracy (0.53) in 2012.
  • The number of countries that are autocratizing has been increasing: in 2021, 30 countries were autocratizing, remaining close to the all-time high of 31 countries in 2019. For a long time, the number of autocratizing countries was offset by a larger number of democratizing countries. But since 2011, the number of countries that are becoming less democratic has been higher.

Electoral Democracy Index from Our World in Data is based on the expert assessments and index by V-Dem.It captures to which extent political leaders are elected under comprehensive voting rights in free and fair elections, and freedoms of association and expression are guaranteed. It ranges from 0 to 1 (most democratic).

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