Netherlands vs United States: Free and fair elections
Netherlands
1
in 2025
United States
1
in 2025
Netherlands rank
1st
United States rank
1st
Free and fair elections over time
- Netherlands
- United States
How they compare
Netherlands currently reports 1 against 1 in United States, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 179 shared years of data; in 1796 it was United States ahead.
Netherlands ranks 1st and United States ranks 1st of 172 countries.
Across the 22 decades both report, Netherlands averaged higher in 2 and United States in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Netherlands | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1790s | 0 | 1 | 1 | United States |
| 1800s | 0 | 1 | 1 | United States |
| 1810s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1840s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 1 | 0.8 | 0.2 | Netherlands |
| 1880s | 1 | 0.6 | 0.4 | Netherlands |
| 1890s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1920s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1930s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1940s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1950s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1960s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher free and fair elections, Netherlands or United States?
- Netherlands, at 1 against 1 in United States as of 2025.
- What is the difference in free and fair elections between Netherlands and United States?
- 0, with Netherlands ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Netherlands and United States?
- 179 years are reported by both, from 1796 to 2025.
- How do Netherlands and United States rank globally for free and fair elections?
- Netherlands ranks 1st and United States ranks 1st of 172 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Free and fair elections. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Central estimate of whether national elections were free and fair or not.