Statizoid

Strong Elected Local Governments Index in New Zealand

New Zealand: Strong Elected Local Governments Index was 0.97 in 2025. ▬ Flat

Latest (2025)
0.97
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
34th
of 175 countries
All-time high
0.979
in 1854
All-time low
0.815
in 1853
Years of data
173
1853–2025

Strong Elected Local Governments Index in New Zealand, 1853–2025

00.20.40.60.81185319392025

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

Analysis

In 2025, strong elected local governments index in New Zealand stood at 0.97.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, strong elected local governments index in New Zealand peaked at 0.979 in 1854 and was at its lowest, 0.815, in 1853.

New Zealand ranks 34th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

Strong Elected Local Governments Index in New Zealand, year by year

Year Value Change
1853 0.815 —
1854 0.979 +20.1%
1855 0.979 +0.0%
1856 0.979 +0.0%
1857 0.979 +0.0%
1858 0.979 +0.0%
1859 0.979 +0.0%
1860 0.979 +0.0%
1861 0.979 +0.0%
1862 0.979 +0.0%
1863 0.979 +0.0%
1864 0.979 +0.0%
1865 0.979 +0.0%
1866 0.979 +0.0%
1867 0.979 +0.0%
1868 0.979 +0.0%
1869 0.979 +0.0%
1870 0.979 +0.0%
1871 0.979 +0.0%
1872 0.979 +0.0%
1873 0.979 +0.0%
1874 0.979 +0.0%
1875 0.979 +0.0%
1876 0.979 +0.0%
1877 0.979 +0.0%
1878 0.979 +0.0%
1879 0.979 +0.0%
1880 0.979 +0.0%
1881 0.979 +0.0%
1882 0.979 +0.0%
1883 0.979 +0.0%
1884 0.979 +0.0%
1885 0.979 +0.0%
1886 0.979 +0.0%
1887 0.979 +0.0%
1888 0.979 +0.0%
1889 0.979 +0.0%
1890 0.979 +0.0%
1891 0.979 +0.0%
1892 0.979 +0.0%
1893 0.979 +0.0%
1894 0.979 +0.0%
1895 0.979 +0.0%
1896 0.979 +0.0%
1897 0.979 +0.0%
1898 0.979 +0.0%
1899 0.979 +0.0%
1900 0.979 +0.0%
1901 0.979 +0.0%
1902 0.979 +0.0%
1903 0.979 +0.0%
1904 0.979 +0.0%
1905 0.979 +0.0%
1906 0.979 +0.0%
1907 0.979 +0.0%
1908 0.979 +0.0%
1909 0.979 +0.0%
1910 0.979 +0.0%
1911 0.979 +0.0%
1912 0.979 +0.0%
1913 0.979 +0.0%
1914 0.979 +0.0%
1915 0.979 +0.0%
1916 0.979 +0.0%
1917 0.979 +0.0%
1918 0.979 +0.0%
1919 0.979 +0.0%
1920 0.979 +0.0%
1921 0.979 +0.0%
1922 0.979 +0.0%
1923 0.979 +0.0%
1924 0.979 +0.0%
1925 0.979 +0.0%
1926 0.979 +0.0%
1927 0.979 +0.0%
1928 0.979 +0.0%
1929 0.979 +0.0%
1930 0.979 +0.0%
1931 0.979 +0.0%
1932 0.979 +0.0%
1933 0.979 +0.0%
1934 0.979 +0.0%
1935 0.979 +0.0%
1936 0.979 +0.0%
1937 0.979 +0.0%
1938 0.979 +0.0%
1939 0.979 +0.0%
1940 0.979 +0.0%
1941 0.979 +0.0%
1942 0.979 +0.0%
1943 0.979 +0.0%
1944 0.979 +0.0%
1945 0.979 +0.0%
1946 0.979 +0.0%
1947 0.979 +0.0%
1948 0.979 +0.0%
1949 0.979 +0.0%
1950 0.979 +0.0%
1951 0.979 +0.0%
1952 0.979 +0.0%
1953 0.979 +0.0%
1954 0.979 +0.0%
1955 0.979 +0.0%
1956 0.979 +0.0%
1957 0.979 +0.0%
1958 0.979 +0.0%
1959 0.979 +0.0%
1960 0.979 +0.0%
1961 0.979 +0.0%
1962 0.979 +0.0%
1963 0.979 +0.0%
1964 0.979 +0.0%
1965 0.979 +0.0%
1966 0.979 +0.0%
1967 0.979 +0.0%
1968 0.979 +0.0%
1969 0.979 +0.0%
1970 0.979 +0.0%
1971 0.979 +0.0%
1972 0.979 +0.0%
1973 0.979 +0.0%
1974 0.979 +0.0%
1975 0.979 +0.0%
1976 0.979 +0.0%
1977 0.979 +0.0%
1978 0.979 +0.0%
1979 0.979 +0.0%
1980 0.979 +0.0%
1981 0.979 +0.0%
1982 0.979 +0.0%
1983 0.979 +0.0%
1984 0.979 +0.0%
1985 0.979 +0.0%
1986 0.979 +0.0%
1987 0.979 +0.0%
1988 0.979 +0.0%
1989 0.979 +0.0%
1990 0.979 +0.0%
1991 0.979 +0.0%
1992 0.979 +0.0%
1993 0.979 +0.0%
1994 0.979 +0.0%
1995 0.979 +0.0%
1996 0.979 +0.0%
1997 0.979 +0.0%
1998 0.979 +0.0%
1999 0.979 +0.0%
2000 0.979 +0.0%
2001 0.979 +0.0%
2002 0.979 +0.0%
2003 0.979 +0.0%
2004 0.979 +0.0%
2005 0.979 +0.0%
2006 0.979 +0.0%
2007 0.979 +0.0%
2008 0.979 +0.0%
2009 0.979 +0.0%
2010 0.97 -0.9%
2011 0.97 +0.0%
2012 0.97 +0.0%
2013 0.97 +0.0%
2014 0.97 +0.0%
2015 0.97 +0.0%
2016 0.97 +0.0%
2017 0.97 +0.0%
2018 0.97 +0.0%
2019 0.97 +0.0%
2020 0.97 +0.0%
2021 0.97 +0.0%
2022 0.97 +0.0%
2023 0.97 +0.0%
2024 0.97 +0.0%
2025 0.97 +0.0%

New Zealand compared with similar countries

  • New Zealand's 0.97 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.963, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)
  • New Zealand's 0.97 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.642, 1.5× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1850s 0.9556 0.815 0.979 7
1860s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1870s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1880s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1890s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1900s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1910s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1920s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1930s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1940s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1950s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1960s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1970s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1980s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
1990s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
2000s 0.979 0.979 0.979 10
2010s 0.97 0.97 0.97 10
2020s 0.97 0.97 0.97 6

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 32 Peru 0.971 compare
  2. 32 Zambia 0.971 compare
  3. 35 Ecuador 0.969 compare
  4. 35 Laos 0.969 compare
  5. 37 Finland 0.967 compare
  6. 37 Montenegro 0.967 compare
  7. 37 Panama 0.967 compare
  8. 37 Taiwan 0.967 compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is strong elected local governments index in New Zealand?
Strong elected local governments index in New Zealand was 0.97 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest strong elected local governments index recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 0.979 in 1854.
What is the lowest strong elected local governments index recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 0.815 in 1853.
How does New Zealand rank for strong elected local governments index?
New Zealand ranks 34th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
Is strong elected local governments index rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Strong Elected Local Governments Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Strong Elected Local Governments Index in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/strong-elected-local-governments-index/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Strong Elected Local Governments Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
175 places, 25,933 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which elected local governments exist, and they operate without interference from local unelected bodies.