Free and Fair Elections Index in El Salvador
El Salvador: Free and Fair Elections Index was 0.307 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.307
Change on year
down 2.2%
World rank
115th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.655
in 2014
All-time low
0
in 1838
Years of data
147
1838–2025
Free and Fair Elections Index in El Salvador, 1838–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 0.307 for free and fair elections index in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.2% on the previous year and down 52.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, free and fair elections index in El Salvador peaked at 0.655 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1838.
El Salvador ranks 115th of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Free and Fair Elections Index in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1838 | 0 | — |
| 1839 | 0 | — |
| 1840 | 0 | — |
| 1841 | 0 | — |
| 1845 | 0 | — |
| 1846 | 0 | — |
| 1848 | 0 | — |
| 1849 | 0 | — |
| 1851 | 0 | — |
| 1852 | 0 | — |
| 1858 | 0 | — |
| 1859 | 0 | — |
| 1863 | 0 | — |
| 1864 | 0 | — |
| 1865 | 0 | — |
| 1866 | 0 | — |
| 1867 | 0 | — |
| 1868 | 0 | — |
| 1869 | 0 | — |
| 1871 | 0 | — |
| 1876 | 0 | — |
| 1885 | 0 | — |
| 1890 | 0 | — |
| 1891 | 0 | — |
| 1903 | 0.028 | — |
| 1904 | 0.028 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.028 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.028 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.03 | +7.1% |
| 1908 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.033 | +10.0% |
| 1912 | 0.033 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.033 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.033 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.112 | +239.4% |
| 1916 | 0.114 | +1.8% |
| 1917 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.039 | -65.8% |
| 1920 | 0.036 | -7.7% |
| 1921 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.03 | -16.7% |
| 1924 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.03 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.051 | +70.0% |
| 1928 | 0.049 | -3.9% |
| 1929 | 0.049 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.049 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 0.055 | +12.2% |
| 1932 | 0.044 | -20.0% |
| 1933 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.033 | -25.0% |
| 1936 | 0.032 | -3.0% |
| 1937 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.036 | +12.5% |
| 1940 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.036 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.033 | -8.3% |
| 1945 | 0.034 | +3.0% |
| 1946 | 0.035 | +2.9% |
| 1947 | 0.035 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.033 | -5.7% |
| 1949 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1950 | 0.039 | — |
| 1951 | 0.051 | +30.8% |
| 1952 | 0.039 | -23.5% |
| 1953 | 0.037 | -5.1% |
| 1954 | 0.037 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.037 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.038 | +2.7% |
| 1957 | 0.039 | +2.6% |
| 1958 | 0.042 | +7.7% |
| 1959 | 0.043 | +2.4% |
| 1960 | 0.039 | -9.3% |
| 1961 | 0.002 | -94.9% |
| 1962 | 0.057 | +2750.0% |
| 1963 | 0.055 | -3.5% |
| 1964 | 0.059 | +7.3% |
| 1965 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.062 | +5.1% |
| 1967 | 0.064 | +3.2% |
| 1968 | 0.065 | +1.6% |
| 1969 | 0.066 | +1.5% |
| 1970 | 0.058 | -12.1% |
| 1971 | 0.057 | -1.7% |
| 1972 | 0.057 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.057 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.056 | -1.8% |
| 1975 | 0.056 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.047 | -16.1% |
| 1977 | 0.053 | +12.8% |
| 1978 | 0.056 | +5.7% |
| 1979 | 0.046 | -17.9% |
| 1980 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1981 | 0 | — |
| 1982 | 0.006 | — |
| 1983 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1984 | 0.074 | — |
| 1985 | 0.099 | +33.8% |
| 1986 | 0.101 | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 0.101 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.111 | +9.9% |
| 1989 | 0.123 | +10.8% |
| 1990 | 0.125 | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 0.17 | +36.0% |
| 1992 | 0.208 | +22.4% |
| 1993 | 0.208 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.4 | +92.3% |
| 1995 | 0.426 | +6.5% |
| 1996 | 0.431 | +1.2% |
| 1997 | 0.437 | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 0.439 | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 0.437 | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 0.458 | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 0.463 | +1.1% |
| 2002 | 0.483 | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 0.475 | -1.7% |
| 2004 | 0.475 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.476 | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 0.499 | +4.8% |
| 2007 | 0.505 | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 0.505 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.535 | +5.9% |
| 2010 | 0.536 | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 0.536 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.55 | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 0.575 | +4.5% |
| 2014 | 0.655 | +13.9% |
| 2015 | 0.645 | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 0.642 | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 0.642 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 0.624 | -2.8% |
| 2019 | 0.646 | +3.5% |
| 2020 | 0.629 | -2.6% |
| 2021 | 0.472 | -25.0% |
| 2022 | 0.423 | -10.4% |
| 2023 | 0.423 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 0.314 | -25.8% |
| 2025 | 0.307 | -2.2% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 0.307 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.5655, 54% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 0.307 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.768, 40% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Free and Fair Elections Index in El Salvador changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | +2750.0% | 0.002 | 0.057 |
| 1915 | +239.4% | 0.033 | 0.112 |
| 1949 | -100.0% | 0.033 | 0 |
| 1980 | -100.0% | 0.046 | 0 |
| 1983 | -100.0% | 0.006 | 0 |
| 1961 | -94.9% | 0.039 | 0.002 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1830s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1900s | 0.0289 | 0.028 | 0.03 | 7 |
| 1910s | 0.0655 | 0.03 | 0.114 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.0377 | 0.03 | 0.051 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.0401 | 0.032 | 0.055 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.0314 | 0 | 0.036 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.0402 | 0.037 | 0.051 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.0528 | 0.002 | 0.066 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.0543 | 0.046 | 0.058 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.0615 | 0 | 0.123 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.3281 | 0.125 | 0.439 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.4874 | 0.458 | 0.535 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6051 | 0.536 | 0.655 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.428 | 0.307 | 0.629 | 6 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More reference data data for El Salvador
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2714 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.6267 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0909 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.91 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.3176 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 8.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4948 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is free and fair elections index in El Salvador?
- Free and fair elections index in El Salvador was 0.307 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest free and fair elections index recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 0.655 in 2014.
- What is the lowest free and fair elections index recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1838.
- How does El Salvador rank for free and fair elections index?
- El Salvador ranks 115th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is free and fair elections index rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 52.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this El Salvador 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 147 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.