Estonia vs South Africa: Electoral democracy (Lexical Index)
Estonia
1
in 2025
South Africa
1
in 2025
Estonia rank
1st
South Africa rank
1st
Electoral democracy (Lexical Index) over time
- Estonia
- South Africa
How they compare
Estonia currently reports 1 against 1 in South Africa, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 109 shared years of data; in 1917 it was South Africa ahead.
Estonia ranks 1st and South Africa ranks 1st of 198 countries.
Estonia has averaged higher in every one of the 12 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Estonia | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 0.6667 | 0 | 0.6667 | Estonia |
| 1920s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Estonia |
| 1930s | 0.4 | 0 | 0.4 | Estonia |
| 1940s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1950s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1970s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | Estonia |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher electoral democracy, Estonia or South Africa?
- Estonia, at 1 against 1 in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in electoral democracy between Estonia and South Africa?
- 0, with Estonia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Estonia and South Africa?
- 109 years are reported by both, from 1917 to 2025.
- How do Estonia and South Africa rank globally for electoral democracy?
- Estonia ranks 1st and South Africa ranks 1st of 198 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Electoral democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Identifies the political regime of a country using the reduced Lexical Index of Electoral Democracy. It distinguishes between non-electoral autocracies, one-party autocracies, multi-party autocracies without elected executive, multi-party autocracies, exclusive democracies, male democracies, and electoral democracies (including full democracies or polyarchies).