Meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland
Iceland: Meaningful democratic electoral institutions was 1 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland is 1, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 126 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland peaked at 1 in 1904 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1900.
That places Iceland 1st out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0 | — |
| 1901 | 0 | — |
| 1902 | 0 | — |
| 1903 | 0 | — |
| 1904 | 1 | — |
| 1905 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 1 | +0.0% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 1 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 1 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.6 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 1910s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1920s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1930s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1940s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1950s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1960s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
- 1 Argentina 1 compare
- 1 Armenia 1 compare
- 1 Australia 1 compare
- 1 Austria 1 compare
- 1 Barbados 1 compare
- 1 Belgium 1 compare
- 1 Bhutan 1 compare
- 1 Bolivia 1 compare
- 1 Botswana 1 compare
- 1 Brazil 1 compare
- 1 Bulgaria 1 compare
- 1 Canada 1 compare
- 1 Cape Verde 1 compare
- 1 Chile 1 compare
- 1 Colombia 1 compare
- 1 Costa Rica 1 compare
- 1 Croatia 1 compare
- 1 Cyprus 1 compare
- 1 Czechia 1 compare
- 1 Denmark 1 compare
- 1 Dominican Republic 1 compare
- 1 East Timor 1 compare
- 1 Ecuador 1 compare
- 1 Estonia 1 compare
- 1 Fiji 1 compare
- 1 Finland 1 compare
- 1 France 1 compare
- 1 Gambia 1 compare
- 1 Germany 1 compare
- 1 Ghana 1 compare
- 1 Greece 1 compare
- 1 Guatemala 1 compare
- 1 Guyana 1 compare
- 1 Honduras 1 compare
- 1 Ireland 1 compare
- 1 Israel 1 compare
- 1 Italy 1 compare
- 1 Jamaica 1 compare
- 1 Japan 1 compare
- 1 Kenya 1 compare
- 1 Latvia 1 compare
- 1 Lesotho 1 compare
- 1 Liberia 1 compare
- 1 Lithuania 1 compare
- 1 Luxembourg 1 compare
- 1 Malawi 1 compare
- 1 Malaysia 1 compare
- 1 Maldives 1 compare
- 1 Malta 1 compare
- 1 Mauritius 1 compare
- 1 Moldova 1 compare
- 1 Mongolia 1 compare
- 1 Montenegro 1 compare
- 1 Namibia 1 compare
- 1 Nepal 1 compare
- 1 Netherlands 1 compare
- 1 New Zealand 1 compare
- 1 Nigeria 1 compare
- 1 North Macedonia 1 compare
- 1 Norway 1 compare
- 1 Panama 1 compare
- 1 Paraguay 1 compare
- 1 Peru 1 compare
- 1 Poland 1 compare
- 1 Portugal 1 compare
- 1 Romania 1 compare
- 1 Sao Tome and Principe 1 compare
- 1 Senegal 1 compare
- 1 Seychelles 1 compare
- 1 Slovakia 1 compare
- 1 Slovenia 1 compare
- 1 Solomon Islands 1 compare
- 1 South Africa 1 compare
- 1 South Korea 1 compare
- 1 Spain 1 compare
- 1 Sri Lanka 1 compare
- 1 Suriname 1 compare
- 1 Sweden 1 compare
- 1 Switzerland 1 compare
- 1 Taiwan 1 compare
- 1 Trinidad and Tobago 1 compare
- 1 United Kingdom 1 compare
- 1 United States 1 compare
- 1 Uruguay 1 compare
- 1 Vanuatu 1 compare
More reference data data for Iceland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0288 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0708 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0001 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0964 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.062 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2576 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.7664 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0005 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland?
- Meaningful democratic electoral institutions in Iceland was 1 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest meaningful democratic electoral institutions recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 1 in 1904.
- What is the lowest meaningful democratic electoral institutions recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1900.
- How does Iceland rank for meaningful democratic electoral institutions?
- Iceland ranks 1st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is meaningful democratic electoral institutions rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Meaningful democratic electoral institutions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Central estimate of whether the country is meaningfully an electoral democracy. This includes the extent to which political leaders are elected under comprehensive suffrage in free and fair elections, and freedoms of association and expression are guaranteed.