United States vs USSR: Universal right to vote in practice
United States
2
in 2025
USSR
2
in 1990
United States rank
1st
USSR rank
1st
Universal right to vote in practice over time
- United States
- USSR
How they compare
United States currently reports 2 against 2 in USSR, a difference of 0.
Across all 69 years both countries report, USSR has been ahead every year.
United States ranks 1st and USSR ranks 1st of 197 countries.
USSR has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | United States | USSR | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1930s | 0 | 0.8 | 0.8 | USSR |
| 1940s | 0 | 2 | 2 | USSR |
| 1950s | 0 | 2 | 2 | USSR |
| 1960s | 1 | 2 | 1 | USSR |
| 1970s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher universal right to vote in practice, United States or USSR?
- United States, at 2 against 2 in USSR as of 2025.
- What is the difference in universal right to vote in practice between United States and USSR?
- 0, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for United States and USSR?
- 69 years are reported by both, from 1922 to 1990.
- How do United States and USSR rank globally for universal right to vote in practice?
- United States ranks 1st and USSR ranks 1st of 197 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Universal right to vote in practice. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Indicates whether virtually all adult citizens have the right to vote in practice (score 2), only men have broad voting rights in practice (score 1), or there are no broad voting rights in practice (score 0).