Statizoid

Free and Fair Elections Index in Canada

Canada: Free and Fair Elections Index was 0.944 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
0.944
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
16th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.95
in 2020
All-time low
0.459
in 1841
Years of data
185
1841–2025

Free and Fair Elections Index in Canada, 1841–2025

00.20.40.60.81184119332025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for free and fair elections index in Canada is 0.944, measured in 2025.

The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 5.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, free and fair elections index in Canada peaked at 0.95 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.459, in 1841.

That places Canada 16th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 185 years of available data.

Free and Fair Elections Index in Canada, year by year

Year Value Change
1841 0.459 —
1842 0.609 +32.7%
1843 0.609 +0.0%
1844 0.612 +0.5%
1845 0.62 +1.3%
1846 0.62 +0.0%
1847 0.62 +0.0%
1848 0.612 -1.3%
1849 0.612 +0.0%
1850 0.612 +0.0%
1851 0.615 +0.5%
1852 0.624 +1.5%
1853 0.624 +0.0%
1854 0.621 -0.5%
1855 0.618 -0.5%
1856 0.618 +0.0%
1857 0.618 +0.0%
1858 0.618 +0.0%
1859 0.616 -0.3%
1860 0.616 +0.0%
1861 0.62 +0.6%
1862 0.62 +0.0%
1863 0.62 +0.0%
1864 0.621 +0.2%
1865 0.621 +0.0%
1866 0.621 +0.0%
1867 0.619 -0.3%
1868 0.615 -0.6%
1869 0.615 +0.0%
1870 0.615 +0.0%
1871 0.615 +0.0%
1872 0.619 +0.7%
1873 0.624 +0.8%
1874 0.617 -1.1%
1875 0.617 +0.0%
1876 0.617 +0.0%
1877 0.617 +0.0%
1878 0.624 +1.1%
1879 0.642 +2.9%
1880 0.642 +0.0%
1881 0.642 +0.0%
1882 0.642 +0.0%
1883 0.642 +0.0%
1884 0.642 +0.0%
1885 0.642 +0.0%
1886 0.642 +0.0%
1887 0.64 -0.3%
1888 0.639 -0.2%
1889 0.639 +0.0%
1890 0.639 +0.0%
1891 0.641 +0.3%
1892 0.641 +0.0%
1893 0.641 +0.0%
1894 0.641 +0.0%
1895 0.641 +0.0%
1896 0.64 -0.2%
1897 0.64 +0.0%
1898 0.64 +0.0%
1899 0.64 +0.0%
1900 0.645 +0.8%
1901 0.676 +4.8%
1902 0.676 +0.0%
1903 0.676 +0.0%
1904 0.676 +0.0%
1905 0.676 +0.0%
1906 0.676 +0.0%
1907 0.676 +0.0%
1908 0.677 +0.1%
1909 0.682 +0.7%
1910 0.682 +0.0%
1911 0.681 -0.1%
1912 0.679 -0.3%
1913 0.679 +0.0%
1914 0.679 +0.0%
1915 0.679 +0.0%
1916 0.679 +0.0%
1917 0.674 -0.7%
1918 0.549 -18.5%
1919 0.549 +0.0%
1920 0.613 +11.7%
1921 0.655 +6.9%
1922 0.801 +22.3%
1923 0.801 +0.0%
1924 0.801 +0.0%
1925 0.801 +0.0%
1926 0.799 -0.2%
1927 0.799 +0.0%
1928 0.799 +0.0%
1929 0.799 +0.0%
1930 0.807 +1.0%
1931 0.817 +1.2%
1932 0.817 +0.0%
1933 0.817 +0.0%
1934 0.817 +0.0%
1935 0.819 +0.2%
1936 0.824 +0.6%
1937 0.824 +0.0%
1938 0.824 +0.0%
1939 0.824 +0.0%
1940 0.824 +0.0%
1941 0.826 +0.2%
1942 0.826 +0.0%
1943 0.826 +0.0%
1944 0.826 +0.0%
1945 0.827 +0.1%
1946 0.829 +0.2%
1947 0.829 +0.0%
1948 0.829 +0.0%
1949 0.838 +1.1%
1950 0.847 +1.1%
1951 0.847 +0.0%
1952 0.847 +0.0%
1953 0.854 +0.8%
1954 0.866 +1.4%
1955 0.866 +0.0%
1956 0.866 +0.0%
1957 0.865 -0.1%
1958 0.864 -0.1%
1959 0.864 +0.0%
1960 0.864 +0.0%
1961 0.864 +0.0%
1962 0.877 +1.5%
1963 0.888 +1.3%
1964 0.888 +0.0%
1965 0.888 +0.0%
1966 0.887 -0.1%
1967 0.887 +0.0%
1968 0.882 -0.6%
1969 0.878 -0.5%
1970 0.899 +2.4%
1971 0.899 +0.0%
1972 0.901 +0.2%
1973 0.914 +1.4%
1974 0.912 -0.2%
1975 0.911 -0.1%
1976 0.911 +0.0%
1977 0.911 +0.0%
1978 0.911 +0.0%
1979 0.918 +0.8%
1980 0.92 +0.2%
1981 0.92 +0.0%
1982 0.92 +0.0%
1983 0.92 +0.0%
1984 0.919 -0.1%
1985 0.917 -0.2%
1986 0.917 +0.0%
1987 0.917 +0.0%
1988 0.917 +0.0%
1989 0.917 +0.0%
1990 0.917 +0.0%
1991 0.917 +0.0%
1992 0.917 +0.0%
1993 0.92 +0.3%
1994 0.933 +1.4%
1995 0.933 +0.0%
1996 0.933 +0.0%
1997 0.93 -0.3%
1998 0.927 -0.3%
1999 0.927 +0.0%
2000 0.928 +0.1%
2001 0.937 +1.0%
2002 0.937 +0.0%
2003 0.937 +0.0%
2004 0.933 -0.4%
2005 0.93 -0.3%
2006 0.941 +1.2%
2007 0.942 +0.1%
2008 0.939 -0.3%
2009 0.936 -0.3%
2010 0.936 +0.0%
2011 0.907 -3.1%
2012 0.893 -1.5%
2013 0.892 -0.1%
2014 0.889 -0.3%
2015 0.898 +1.0%
2016 0.938 +4.5%
2017 0.938 +0.0%
2018 0.938 +0.0%
2019 0.941 +0.3%
2020 0.95 +1.0%
2021 0.947 -0.3%
2022 0.937 -1.1%
2023 0.937 +0.0%
2024 0.937 +0.0%
2025 0.944 +0.7%

Canada compared with similar countries

  • Canada's 0.944 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.929, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1840s 0.597 0.459 0.62 9
1850s 0.6184 0.612 0.624 10
1860s 0.6188 0.615 0.621 10
1870s 0.6207 0.615 0.642 10
1880s 0.6412 0.639 0.642 10
1890s 0.6404 0.639 0.641 10
1900s 0.6736 0.645 0.682 10
1910s 0.653 0.549 0.682 10
1920s 0.7668 0.613 0.801 10
1930s 0.819 0.807 0.824 10
1940s 0.828 0.824 0.838 10
1950s 0.8586 0.847 0.866 10
1960s 0.8803 0.864 0.888 10
1970s 0.9087 0.899 0.918 10
1980s 0.9184 0.917 0.92 10
1990s 0.9254 0.917 0.933 10
2000s 0.936 0.928 0.942 10
2010s 0.917 0.889 0.941 10
2020s 0.942 0.937 0.95 6

Countries ranked near Canada

  1. 13 Ireland 0.945 compare
  2. 13 Italy 0.945 compare
  3. 13 Sweden 0.945 compare
  4. 16 Costa Rica 0.944 compare
  5. 16 Greece 0.944 compare
  6. 16 Luxembourg 0.944 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Canada

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is free and fair elections index in Canada?
Free and fair elections index in Canada was 0.944 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest free and fair elections index recorded in Canada?
The highest recorded value was 0.95 in 2020.
What is the lowest free and fair elections index recorded in Canada?
The lowest recorded value was 0.459 in 1841.
How does Canada rank for free and fair elections index?
Canada ranks 16th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is free and fair elections index rising or falling in Canada?
Over the last ten years it is up 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Canada data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Free and Fair Elections Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Free and Fair Elections Index in Canada. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/free-and-fair-elections-index/canada/

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About this data

Indicator
Free and Fair Elections Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 30,402 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which registration fraud, systematic irregularities, government intimidation of the opposition, vote buying, and election violence are absent, and the election management body is autonomous and has enough staff and resources.