South Africa vs Sweden: Electoral democracy (V-Dem)
South Africa
2
in 2025
Sweden
2
in 2025
South Africa rank
1st
Sweden rank
1st
Electoral democracy (V-Dem) over time
- South Africa
- Sweden
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 2 against 2 in Sweden, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 126 shared years of data; in 1900 it was Sweden ahead.
South Africa ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st of 176 countries.
Across the 13 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 1 and Sweden in 8.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 1 | 0.3 | 0.7 | South Africa |
| 1920s | 1 | 1.8 | 0.8 | Sweden |
| 1930s | 1 | 2 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1940s | 1 | 2 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1950s | 1 | 2 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1960s | 1 | 2 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1970s | 1 | 2 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1980s | 0.4 | 2 | 1.6 | Sweden |
| 1990s | 1.1 | 2 | 0.9 | Sweden |
| 2000s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher electoral democracy, South Africa or Sweden?
- South Africa, at 2 against 2 in Sweden as of 2025.
- What is the difference in electoral democracy between South Africa and Sweden?
- 0, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Sweden?
- 126 years are reported by both, from 1900 to 2025.
- How do South Africa and Sweden rank globally for electoral democracy?
- South Africa ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st of 176 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- V-Dem (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 Regimes of the World classification by political scientists Anna Lührmann, Marcus Tannenberg and Staffan Lindberg.