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Centralization of Political Power Index in Malaysia

Malaysia: Centralization of Political Power Index was 0.29 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.29
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
91st
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.625
in 1942
All-time low
0.278
in 2019
Years of data
126
1900–2025

Centralization of Political Power Index in Malaysia, 1900–2025

00.20.40.6190019622025

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for centralization of political power index in Malaysia is 0.29, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 44.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, centralization of political power index in Malaysia peaked at 0.625 in 1942 and was at its lowest, 0.278, in 2019.

That places Malaysia 91st out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 126 years of available data.

Centralization of Political Power Index in Malaysia, year by year

Year Value Change
1900 0.536 —
1901 0.536 +0.0%
1902 0.536 +0.0%
1903 0.536 +0.0%
1904 0.536 +0.0%
1905 0.536 +0.0%
1906 0.536 +0.0%
1907 0.536 +0.0%
1908 0.536 +0.0%
1909 0.536 +0.0%
1910 0.536 +0.0%
1911 0.536 +0.0%
1912 0.536 +0.0%
1913 0.536 +0.0%
1914 0.536 +0.0%
1915 0.536 +0.0%
1916 0.536 +0.0%
1917 0.536 +0.0%
1918 0.536 +0.0%
1919 0.536 +0.0%
1920 0.536 +0.0%
1921 0.536 +0.0%
1922 0.536 +0.0%
1923 0.536 +0.0%
1924 0.536 +0.0%
1925 0.536 +0.0%
1926 0.536 +0.0%
1927 0.536 +0.0%
1928 0.536 +0.0%
1929 0.536 +0.0%
1930 0.536 +0.0%
1931 0.536 +0.0%
1932 0.536 +0.0%
1933 0.536 +0.0%
1934 0.536 +0.0%
1935 0.536 +0.0%
1936 0.536 +0.0%
1937 0.536 +0.0%
1938 0.536 +0.0%
1939 0.536 +0.0%
1940 0.536 +0.0%
1941 0.589 +9.9%
1942 0.625 +6.1%
1943 0.625 +0.0%
1944 0.625 +0.0%
1945 0.625 +0.0%
1946 0.533 -14.7%
1947 0.533 +0.0%
1948 0.533 +0.0%
1949 0.435 -18.4%
1950 0.435 +0.0%
1951 0.435 +0.0%
1952 0.435 +0.0%
1953 0.435 +0.0%
1954 0.435 +0.0%
1955 0.333 -23.4%
1956 0.333 +0.0%
1957 0.432 +29.7%
1958 0.432 +0.0%
1959 0.432 +0.0%
1960 0.432 +0.0%
1961 0.432 +0.0%
1962 0.446 +3.2%
1963 0.446 +0.0%
1964 0.446 +0.0%
1965 0.446 +0.0%
1966 0.446 +0.0%
1967 0.44 -1.3%
1968 0.448 +1.8%
1969 0.448 +0.0%
1970 0.544 +21.4%
1971 0.544 +0.0%
1972 0.451 -17.1%
1973 0.451 +0.0%
1974 0.451 +0.0%
1975 0.451 +0.0%
1976 0.451 +0.0%
1977 0.451 +0.0%
1978 0.451 +0.0%
1979 0.451 +0.0%
1980 0.451 +0.0%
1981 0.483 +7.1%
1982 0.569 +17.8%
1983 0.572 +0.5%
1984 0.572 +0.0%
1985 0.572 +0.0%
1986 0.572 +0.0%
1987 0.572 +0.0%
1988 0.621 +8.6%
1989 0.574 -7.6%
1990 0.574 +0.0%
1991 0.574 +0.0%
1992 0.574 +0.0%
1993 0.574 +0.0%
1994 0.574 +0.0%
1995 0.574 +0.0%
1996 0.574 +0.0%
1997 0.574 +0.0%
1998 0.574 +0.0%
1999 0.574 +0.0%
2000 0.574 +0.0%
2001 0.574 +0.0%
2002 0.556 -3.1%
2003 0.556 +0.0%
2004 0.468 -15.8%
2005 0.468 +0.0%
2006 0.468 +0.0%
2007 0.468 +0.0%
2008 0.468 +0.0%
2009 0.465 -0.6%
2010 0.465 +0.0%
2011 0.461 -0.9%
2012 0.447 -3.0%
2013 0.499 +11.6%
2014 0.499 +0.0%
2015 0.522 +4.6%
2016 0.522 +0.0%
2017 0.558 +6.9%
2018 0.305 -45.3%
2019 0.278 -8.9%
2020 0.31 +11.5%
2021 0.328 +5.8%
2022 0.332 +1.2%
2023 0.286 -13.9%
2024 0.289 +1.0%
2025 0.29 +0.3%

Malaysia compared with similar countries

  • Malaysia's 0.29 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3495, 83% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
  • Malaysia's 0.29 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.267, 1.1× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0.536 0.536 0.536 10
1910s 0.536 0.536 0.536 10
1920s 0.536 0.536 0.536 10
1930s 0.536 0.536 0.536 10
1940s 0.5659 0.435 0.625 10
1950s 0.4137 0.333 0.435 10
1960s 0.443 0.432 0.448 10
1970s 0.4696 0.451 0.544 10
1980s 0.5558 0.451 0.621 10
1990s 0.574 0.574 0.574 10
2000s 0.5065 0.465 0.574 10
2010s 0.4556 0.278 0.558 10
2020s 0.3058 0.286 0.332 6

Countries ranked near Malaysia

  1. 88 Hungary 0.34 compare
  2. 89 Liberia 0.336 compare
  3. 90 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.335 compare
  4. 92 East Timor 0.287 compare
  5. 93 Romania 0.279 compare
  6. 94 Albania 0.275 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Malaysia

All data for Malaysia →

Frequently asked questions

What is centralization of political power index in Malaysia?
Centralization of political power index in Malaysia was 0.29 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest centralization of political power index recorded in Malaysia?
The highest recorded value was 0.625 in 1942.
What is the lowest centralization of political power index recorded in Malaysia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.278 in 2019.
How does Malaysia rank for centralization of political power index?
Malaysia ranks 91st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is centralization of political power index rising or falling in Malaysia?
Over the last ten years it is down 44.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Malaysia data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Centralization of Political Power Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Centralization of Political Power Index in Malaysia. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-centralization-index/malaysia/

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About this data

Indicator
Centralization of Political Power Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,802 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which the executive is unconstrained by the legislature, judiciary, electoral management body, and other oversight.