Democracy in USSR

USSR: Democracy was 1 in 1991. ◆ Volatile

Latest (1991)
1
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
98th
of 168 countries
All-time high
1
in 1989
All-time low
0
in 1922
Years of data
70
1922–1991

Democracy in USSR, 1922–1991

00.20.40.60.81192219561991

Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for democracy in USSR is 1, measured in 1991. That is the highest value across all 70 years on record.

Over the whole period, democracy in USSR peaked at 1 in 1989 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1922.

USSR ranks 98th of 168 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.

Democracy in USSR, year by year

Annual values for Democracy in USSR, 1922 to 1991.
Year Value Change
1922 0
1923 0
1924 0
1925 0
1926 0
1927 0
1928 0
1929 0
1930 0
1931 0
1932 0
1933 0
1934 0
1935 0
1936 0
1937 0
1938 0
1939 0
1940 0
1941 0
1942 0
1943 0
1944 0
1945 0
1946 0
1947 0
1948 0
1949 0
1950 0
1951 0
1952 0
1953 0
1954 0
1955 0
1956 0
1957 0
1958 0
1959 0
1960 0
1961 0
1962 0
1963 0
1964 0
1965 0
1966 0
1967 0
1968 0
1969 0
1970 0
1971 0
1972 0
1973 0
1974 0
1975 0
1976 0
1977 0
1978 0
1979 0
1980 0
1981 0
1982 0
1983 0
1984 0
1985 0
1986 0
1987 0
1988 0
1989 1
1990 1 +0.0%
1991 1 +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1920s 0 0 0 8
1930s 0 0 0 10
1940s 0 0 0 10
1950s 0 0 0 10
1960s 0 0 0 10
1970s 0 0 0 10
1980s 0.1 0 1 10
1990s 1 1 1 2

Countries ranked near USSR

  1. 98 Afghanistan 1 compare
  2. 98 Algeria 1 compare
  3. 98 Angola 1 compare
  4. 98 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 compare
  5. 98 Burundi 1 compare
  6. 98 Cambodia 1 compare
  7. 98 Cameroon 1 compare
  8. 98 Chad 1 compare
  9. 98 Comoros 1 compare
  10. 98 Congo 1 compare
  11. 98 Cote d'Ivoire 1 compare
  12. 98 Cuba 1 compare
  13. 98 Democratic Republic of Congo 1 compare
  14. 98 Djibouti 1 compare
  15. 98 Ecuador 1 compare
  16. 98 Egypt 1 compare
  17. 98 Ethiopia 1
  18. 98 Fiji 1 compare
  19. 98 Gabon 1 compare
  20. 98 Gambia 1 compare
  21. 98 Guinea 1 compare
  22. 98 Haiti 1 compare
  23. 98 Jordan 1 compare
  24. 98 Libya 1 compare
  25. 98 Mali 1 compare
  26. 98 Mauritania 1 compare
  27. 98 Morocco 1 compare
  28. 98 Mozambique 1 compare
  29. 98 Niger 1 compare
  30. 98 Papua New Guinea 1 compare
  31. 98 Russia 1 compare
  32. 98 Rwanda 1 compare
  33. 98 Singapore 1 compare
  34. 98 Somalia 1 compare
  35. 98 South Sudan 1
  36. 98 Sudan 1
  37. 98 Suriname 1 compare
  38. 98 Tajikistan 1 compare
  39. 98 Tanzania 1 compare
  40. 98 Thailand 1 compare
  41. 98 Togo 1 compare
  42. 98 Turkey 1 compare
  43. 98 Uganda 1 compare
  44. 98 Ukraine 1 compare
  45. 98 United States 1 compare
  46. 98 Venezuela 1 compare
  47. 98 Yemen 1
  48. 98 Zimbabwe 1 compare

See the full ranking of 168 places →

More reference data data for USSR

All data for USSR →

Frequently asked questions

What is democracy in USSR?
Democracy in USSR was 1 in 1991, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest democracy recorded in USSR?
The highest recorded value was 1 in 1989.
What is the lowest democracy recorded in USSR?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1922.
How does USSR rank for democracy?
USSR ranks 98th out of 168 countries with data for 1991.
Where does this USSR data come from?
The figures come from Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Democracy in USSR. Statizoid, drawing on Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-regime-polity/ussr/

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About this data

Indicator
Democracy
Source
Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
168 places, 18,392 data points, 1776–2020
Last refreshed

Identifies the political regime of a country using the Polity 5 data by the Center for Systemic Peace. It distinguishes between autocracies (score 0), anocracies (score 1), and democracies (score 2).