Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Malta
Malta: Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) was 63 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of electoral democracy in Malta, 1948–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Malta recorded 63 years for age of electoral democracy in 2025. That is the highest value across all 73 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.6% on the previous year and up 18.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Malta peaked at 63 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1948.
That places Malta 24th out of 111 countries with data for 2025, putting it 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 Malta, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 1 years | — |
| 1949 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1950 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1951 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1952 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1953 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1954 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1955 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1956 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1957 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1963 | 1 years | -90.0% |
| 1964 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1965 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1966 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1967 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1968 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1969 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1970 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1971 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1972 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1973 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1974 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1975 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1976 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1977 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1978 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1979 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1980 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1981 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1982 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1983 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1984 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1985 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1986 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1987 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1988 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1989 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1990 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1991 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1992 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1993 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1994 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1995 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1996 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1997 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1999 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 2001 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 2002 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 2003 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 2004 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 2006 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 2007 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 2008 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 2011 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 2012 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 2013 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 2015 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2022 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 2024 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 2025 | 63 years | +1.6% |
Malta compared with similar countries
- Malta's 63 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 63.5 years, 99% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Malta 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1964 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1963 | -90.0% | 10 years | 1 years |
| 1950 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1965 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1951 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 1.5 years | 1 years | 2 years | 2 |
| 1950s | 6.5 years | 3 years | 10 years | 8 |
| 1960s | 4 years | 1 years | 7 years | 7 |
| 1970s | 12.5 years | 8 years | 17 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 22.5 years | 18 years | 27 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 32.5 years | 28 years | 37 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 42.5 years | 38 years | 47 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.5 years | 48 years | 57 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 60.5 years | 58 years | 63 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malta
More social development data for Malta
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 8,306 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 11 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % 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 11 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0143 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 Malta?
- Age of electoral democracy in Malta was 63 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Malta?
- The highest recorded value was 63 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Malta?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1948.
- How does Malta rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Malta ranks 24th out of 111 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Malta?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malta 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
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About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.