Age of electoral democracy (Lexical Index) in Palau
Palau: Age of electoral democracy (Lexical Index) was 45 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of electoral democracy in Palau, 1981–2025
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2025, age of electoral democracy in Palau stood at 45 years. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.3% on the previous year and up 28.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Palau peaked at 45 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1981.
Palau ranks 51st of 144 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.
Age of electoral democracy (Lexical Index) in Palau, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 1 years | — |
| 1982 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1983 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1984 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1985 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1986 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1987 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1988 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1989 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1990 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1991 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1992 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1993 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1994 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1995 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1996 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1997 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1998 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1999 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 2000 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 2001 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 2002 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 2003 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 2004 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 2005 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 2006 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 2007 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 2008 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 2009 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 2010 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 2011 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 2012 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 2013 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 2014 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 2016 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 2018 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 2019 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 2021 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 2023 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 2024 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 45 years | +2.3% |
Palau compared with similar countries
- Palau's 45 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 57 years, 79% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Palau's 45 years is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 45 years, 1.0× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of electoral democracy (Lexical Index) in Palau changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1983 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1984 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1985 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5 years | 1 years | 9 years | 9 |
| 1990s | 14.5 years | 10 years | 19 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.5 years | 20 years | 29 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.5 years | 30 years | 39 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 42.5 years | 40 years | 45 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Palau
More social development data for Palau
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Sovereign state gleditsch ward, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, per square kilometre 0.0022 units per square kilometre (2023)
- LGBT+ Rights Index 1 (2025)
- Democracy lexical, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Physical Integrity Rights Score 4.52 (2019)
- Political Rights Score 37 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of electoral democracy in Palau?
- Age of electoral democracy in Palau was 45 years in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Palau?
- The highest recorded value was 45 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Palau?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1981.
- How does Palau rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Palau ranks 51st out of 144 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Palau?
- Over the last ten years it is up 28.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Palau data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of electoral democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.