Free and Fair Elections Index in Portugal
Portugal: Free and Fair Elections Index was 0.94 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.94
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
22nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.973
in 2010
All-time low
0
in 1789
Years of data
237
1789–2025
Free and Fair Elections Index in Portugal, 1789–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Portugal recorded 0.94 for free and fair elections index in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.3% on the previous year and down 2.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, free and fair elections index in Portugal peaked at 0.973 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1789.
Portugal ranks 22nd of 176 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Free and Fair Elections Index in Portugal, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1789 | 0 | — |
| 1790 | 0 | — |
| 1791 | 0 | — |
| 1792 | 0 | — |
| 1793 | 0 | — |
| 1794 | 0 | — |
| 1795 | 0 | — |
| 1796 | 0 | — |
| 1797 | 0 | — |
| 1798 | 0 | — |
| 1799 | 0 | — |
| 1800 | 0 | — |
| 1801 | 0 | — |
| 1802 | 0 | — |
| 1803 | 0 | — |
| 1804 | 0 | — |
| 1805 | 0 | — |
| 1806 | 0 | — |
| 1807 | 0 | — |
| 1808 | 0 | — |
| 1809 | 0 | — |
| 1810 | 0 | — |
| 1811 | 0 | — |
| 1812 | 0 | — |
| 1813 | 0 | — |
| 1814 | 0 | — |
| 1815 | 0 | — |
| 1816 | 0 | — |
| 1817 | 0 | — |
| 1818 | 0 | — |
| 1819 | 0 | — |
| 1820 | 0.016 | — |
| 1821 | 0.263 | +1543.8% |
| 1822 | 0.264 | +0.4% |
| 1823 | 0.269 | +1.9% |
| 1824 | 0.269 | +0.0% |
| 1825 | 0.269 | +0.0% |
| 1826 | 0.139 | -48.3% |
| 1827 | 0.225 | +61.9% |
| 1828 | 0.18 | -20.0% |
| 1829 | 0.172 | -4.4% |
| 1830 | 0.172 | +0.0% |
| 1831 | 0.172 | +0.0% |
| 1832 | 0.172 | +0.0% |
| 1833 | 0.172 | +0.0% |
| 1834 | 0.115 | -33.1% |
| 1835 | 0.116 | +0.9% |
| 1836 | 0.114 | -1.7% |
| 1837 | 0.111 | -2.6% |
| 1838 | 0.112 | +0.9% |
| 1839 | 0.115 | +2.7% |
| 1840 | 0.117 | +1.7% |
| 1841 | 0.118 | +0.9% |
| 1842 | 0.079 | -33.1% |
| 1843 | 0.115 | +45.6% |
| 1844 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1845 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1846 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1847 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1848 | 0.114 | -0.9% |
| 1849 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1850 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1851 | 0.121 | +6.1% |
| 1852 | 0.157 | +29.8% |
| 1853 | 0.164 | +4.5% |
| 1854 | 0.164 | +0.0% |
| 1855 | 0.164 | +0.0% |
| 1856 | 0.168 | +2.4% |
| 1857 | 0.192 | +14.3% |
| 1858 | 0.202 | +5.2% |
| 1859 | 0.207 | +2.5% |
| 1860 | 0.315 | +52.2% |
| 1861 | 0.312 | -1.0% |
| 1862 | 0.31 | -0.6% |
| 1863 | 0.31 | +0.0% |
| 1864 | 0.313 | +1.0% |
| 1865 | 0.319 | +1.9% |
| 1866 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1867 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1868 | 0.314 | -1.6% |
| 1869 | 0.317 | +1.0% |
| 1870 | 0.319 | +0.6% |
| 1871 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1872 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1873 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1874 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1875 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1876 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1877 | 0.319 | +0.0% |
| 1878 | 0.318 | -0.3% |
| 1879 | 0.311 | -2.2% |
| 1880 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1881 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1882 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1883 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1884 | 0.313 | +0.6% |
| 1885 | 0.314 | +0.3% |
| 1886 | 0.314 | +0.0% |
| 1887 | 0.321 | +2.2% |
| 1888 | 0.322 | +0.3% |
| 1889 | 0.321 | -0.3% |
| 1890 | 0.318 | -0.9% |
| 1891 | 0.318 | +0.0% |
| 1892 | 0.317 | -0.3% |
| 1893 | 0.315 | -0.6% |
| 1894 | 0.294 | -6.7% |
| 1895 | 0.287 | -2.4% |
| 1896 | 0.291 | +1.4% |
| 1897 | 0.285 | -2.1% |
| 1898 | 0.282 | -1.1% |
| 1899 | 0.282 | +0.0% |
| 1900 | 0.275 | -2.5% |
| 1901 | 0.234 | -14.9% |
| 1902 | 0.234 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.234 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.233 | -0.4% |
| 1905 | 0.233 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.233 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.232 | -0.4% |
| 1908 | 0.235 | +1.3% |
| 1909 | 0.236 | +0.4% |
| 1910 | 0.179 | -24.2% |
| 1911 | 0.146 | -18.4% |
| 1912 | 0.245 | +67.8% |
| 1913 | 0.254 | +3.7% |
| 1914 | 0.316 | +24.4% |
| 1915 | 0.276 | -12.7% |
| 1916 | 0.243 | -12.0% |
| 1917 | 0.243 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.237 | -2.5% |
| 1919 | 0.159 | -32.9% |
| 1920 | 0.247 | +55.3% |
| 1921 | 0.248 | +0.4% |
| 1922 | 0.245 | -1.2% |
| 1923 | 0.245 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.245 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.236 | -3.7% |
| 1926 | 0.077 | -67.4% |
| 1927 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1928 | 0.055 | — |
| 1929 | 0.037 | -32.7% |
| 1930 | 0.004 | -89.2% |
| 1931 | 0.071 | +1675.0% |
| 1932 | 0.036 | -49.3% |
| 1933 | 0.071 | +97.2% |
| 1934 | 0.07 | -1.4% |
| 1935 | 0.039 | -44.3% |
| 1936 | 0.039 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.039 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.04 | +2.6% |
| 1939 | 0.044 | +10.0% |
| 1940 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 0.049 | +11.4% |
| 1942 | 0.052 | +6.1% |
| 1943 | 0.052 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.052 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.053 | +1.9% |
| 1946 | 0.056 | +5.7% |
| 1947 | 0.056 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.056 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.056 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.056 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.059 | +5.4% |
| 1952 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.059 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.06 | +1.7% |
| 1958 | 0.061 | +1.7% |
| 1959 | 0.061 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.061 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 0.062 | +1.6% |
| 1962 | 0.063 | +1.6% |
| 1963 | 0.063 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.063 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.063 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1967 | 0 | — |
| 1968 | 0 | — |
| 1969 | 0.018 | — |
| 1970 | 0.096 | +433.3% |
| 1971 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.114 | +18.8% |
| 1974 | 0.082 | -28.1% |
| 1975 | 0.28 | +241.5% |
| 1976 | 0.494 | +76.4% |
| 1977 | 0.721 | +46.0% |
| 1978 | 0.721 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.732 | +1.5% |
| 1980 | 0.886 | +21.0% |
| 1981 | 0.9 | +1.6% |
| 1982 | 0.9 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.918 | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 0.926 | +0.9% |
| 1985 | 0.927 | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 0.934 | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 0.935 | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 0.936 | +0.1% |
| 1989 | 0.936 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.936 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 0.933 | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.933 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.932 | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 0.932 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 0.941 | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 0.951 | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 0.951 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.951 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.968 | +1.8% |
| 2006 | 0.971 | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 0.971 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.967 | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 0.969 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 0.973 | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 0.967 | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 0.966 | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 0.967 | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 0.967 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.96 | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 0.968 | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 0.972 | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 0.972 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.971 | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 0.965 | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 0.962 | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 0.955 | -0.7% |
| 2023 | 0.954 | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 0.943 | -1.2% |
| 2025 | 0.94 | -0.3% |
Portugal compared with similar countries
- Portugal's 0.94 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.929, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Portugal's 0.94 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.8955, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Free and Fair Elections Index in Portugal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | +1675.0% | 0.004 | 0.071 |
| 1821 | +1543.8% | 0.016 | 0.263 |
| 1970 | +433.3% | 0.018 | 0.096 |
| 1975 | +241.5% | 0.082 | 0.28 |
| 1927 | -100.0% | 0.077 | 0 |
| 1966 | -100.0% | 0.063 | 0 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1790s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1800s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1810s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1820s | 0.2066 | 0.016 | 0.269 | 10 |
| 1830s | 0.1371 | 0.111 | 0.172 | 10 |
| 1840s | 0.1117 | 0.079 | 0.118 | 10 |
| 1850s | 0.1653 | 0.114 | 0.207 | 10 |
| 1860s | 0.3148 | 0.31 | 0.319 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0.3181 | 0.311 | 0.319 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0.3149 | 0.311 | 0.322 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0.2989 | 0.282 | 0.318 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.2379 | 0.232 | 0.275 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.2298 | 0.146 | 0.316 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.1635 | 0 | 0.248 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.0453 | 0.004 | 0.071 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.0526 | 0.044 | 0.056 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.0592 | 0.056 | 0.061 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.0393 | 0 | 0.063 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.3432 | 0.082 | 0.732 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.9198 | 0.886 | 0.936 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9332 | 0.932 | 0.936 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.9572 | 0.932 | 0.971 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9683 | 0.96 | 0.973 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.9532 | 0.94 | 0.965 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More reference data data for Portugal
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5144 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.4372 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0472 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.72 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 6.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2572 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is free and fair elections index in Portugal?
- Free and fair elections index in Portugal was 0.94 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest free and fair elections index recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 0.973 in 2010.
- What is the lowest free and fair elections index recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1789.
- How does Portugal rank for free and fair elections index?
- Portugal ranks 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is free and fair elections index rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Portugal 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 — 237 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.