Which has higher judicial checks on government index, Portugal or Spain?

Spain, at 0.937 against 0.919 in Portugal as of 2025.

How many years of comparable data are there for Portugal and Spain?

193 years are reported by both, from 1833 to 2025.

Where does this data come from?

V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Judicial Checks on Government Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Portugal vs Spain: Judicial Checks on Government Index

Portugal

0.919

in 2025

Spain

0.937

in 2025

Portugal rank

26th

Spain rank

23rd

Judicial Checks on Government Index over time

Portugal
Spain

How they compare

Spain currently reports 0.937 against 0.919 in Portugal, a difference of 0.018.

The two have swapped places 6 times across 193 shared years of data; in 1833 it was Spain ahead.

Portugal ranks 26th and Spain ranks 23rd of 176 countries.

Across the 20 decades both report, Portugal averaged higher in 5 and Spain in 15.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Portugal	Spain	Difference	Ahead
1830s	0.3631	0.6237	0.2606	Spain
1840s	0.357	0.628	0.271	Spain
1850s	0.4226	0.628	0.2054	Spain
1860s	0.439	0.6325	0.1935	Spain
1870s	0.439	0.673	0.234	Spain
1880s	0.439	0.673	0.234	Spain
1890s	0.439	0.673	0.234	Spain
1900s	0.4388	0.673	0.2342	Spain
1910s	0.4501	0.673	0.2229	Spain
1920s	0.4199	0.6215	0.2016	Spain
1930s	0.3823	0.5978	0.2155	Spain
1940s	0.384	0.333	0.051	Portugal
1950s	0.384	0.333	0.051	Portugal
1960s	0.384	0.333	0.051	Portugal
1970s	0.6716	0.4633	0.2083	Portugal
1980s	0.9365	0.968	0.0315	Spain
1990s	0.9538	0.968	0.0142	Spain
2000s	0.9544	0.968	0.0136	Spain
2010s	0.9591	0.9454	0.0137	Portugal
2020s	0.938	0.9512	0.0132	Spain

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher judicial checks on government index, Portugal or Spain?: Spain, at 0.937 against 0.919 in Portugal as of 2025.
What is the difference in judicial checks on government index between Portugal and Spain?: 0.018, with Spain ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Portugal and Spain?: 193 years are reported by both, from 1833 to 2025.
How do Portugal and Spain rank globally for judicial checks on government index?: Portugal ranks 26th and Spain ranks 23rd of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Judicial Checks on Government Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator: Judicial Checks on Government Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,297 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which the executive respects the constitution, complies with the judiciary and high courts, and higher and lower courts are independent.