Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Italy
Italy: Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) was 79 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of electoral democracy in Italy, 1947–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for age of electoral democracy in Italy is 79 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 79 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.3% on the previous year and up 14.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Italy peaked at 79 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1947.
Italy ranks 17th of 111 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Italy, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1947 | 1 years | — |
| 1948 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1949 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1950 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1951 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1952 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1953 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1954 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1955 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1956 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1957 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1958 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1959 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1960 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1961 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1962 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1963 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1964 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1965 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1966 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1967 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1968 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1969 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1970 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1971 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1972 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1973 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1974 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1975 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1976 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1977 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1978 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1979 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1980 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1981 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1982 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1983 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1984 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1985 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1986 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1987 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1989 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 1990 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 1992 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 1995 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 1996 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 1999 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2002 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2004 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2006 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 67 years | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 68 years | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 69 years | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 70 years | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 71 years | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 72 years | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 73 years | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 74 years | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 75 years | +1.4% |
| 2022 | 76 years | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 77 years | +1.3% |
| 2024 | 78 years | +1.3% |
| 2025 | 79 years | +1.3% |
Italy compared with similar countries
- Italy's 79 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 63.5 years, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Italy's 79 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 36 years, 2.2× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Italy 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1949 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1950 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1951 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 2 years | 1 years | 3 years | 3 |
| 1950s | 8.5 years | 4 years | 13 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 18.5 years | 14 years | 23 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 28.5 years | 24 years | 33 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 38.5 years | 34 years | 43 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 48.5 years | 44 years | 53 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 58.5 years | 54 years | 63 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 68.5 years | 64 years | 73 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 76.5 years | 74 years | 79 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More social development data for Italy
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 192,914 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 266 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 100 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 266 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0033 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of electoral democracy in Italy?
- Age of electoral democracy in Italy was 79 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 79 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1947.
- How does Italy rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Italy ranks 17th out of 111 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Italy data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (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 — 79 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.