Statizoid

Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in New Zealand

New Zealand: Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) was 139 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
139 years
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
3rd
of 111 countries
All-time high
139 years
in 2025
All-time low
1 years
in 1887
Years of data
139
1887–2025

Age of electoral democracy in New Zealand, 1887–2025

050100150188719562025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.

Analysis

In 2025, age of electoral democracy in New Zealand stood at 139 years. That is the highest value across all 139 years on record.

The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 7.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in New Zealand peaked at 139 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1887.

New Zealand ranks 3rd of 111 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in New Zealand, year by year

Year years Change
1887 1 years —
1888 2 years +100.0%
1889 3 years +50.0%
1890 4 years +33.3%
1891 5 years +25.0%
1892 6 years +20.0%
1893 7 years +16.7%
1894 8 years +14.3%
1895 9 years +12.5%
1896 10 years +11.1%
1897 11 years +10.0%
1898 12 years +9.1%
1899 13 years +8.3%
1900 14 years +7.7%
1901 15 years +7.1%
1902 16 years +6.7%
1903 17 years +6.2%
1904 18 years +5.9%
1905 19 years +5.6%
1906 20 years +5.3%
1907 21 years +5.0%
1908 22 years +4.8%
1909 23 years +4.5%
1910 24 years +4.3%
1911 25 years +4.2%
1912 26 years +4.0%
1913 27 years +3.8%
1914 28 years +3.7%
1915 29 years +3.6%
1916 30 years +3.4%
1917 31 years +3.3%
1918 32 years +3.2%
1919 33 years +3.1%
1920 34 years +3.0%
1921 35 years +2.9%
1922 36 years +2.9%
1923 37 years +2.8%
1924 38 years +2.7%
1925 39 years +2.6%
1926 40 years +2.6%
1927 41 years +2.5%
1928 42 years +2.4%
1929 43 years +2.4%
1930 44 years +2.3%
1931 45 years +2.3%
1932 46 years +2.2%
1933 47 years +2.2%
1934 48 years +2.1%
1935 49 years +2.1%
1936 50 years +2.0%
1937 51 years +2.0%
1938 52 years +2.0%
1939 53 years +1.9%
1940 54 years +1.9%
1941 55 years +1.9%
1942 56 years +1.8%
1943 57 years +1.8%
1944 58 years +1.8%
1945 59 years +1.7%
1946 60 years +1.7%
1947 61 years +1.7%
1948 62 years +1.6%
1949 63 years +1.6%
1950 64 years +1.6%
1951 65 years +1.6%
1952 66 years +1.5%
1953 67 years +1.5%
1954 68 years +1.5%
1955 69 years +1.5%
1956 70 years +1.4%
1957 71 years +1.4%
1958 72 years +1.4%
1959 73 years +1.4%
1960 74 years +1.4%
1961 75 years +1.4%
1962 76 years +1.3%
1963 77 years +1.3%
1964 78 years +1.3%
1965 79 years +1.3%
1966 80 years +1.3%
1967 81 years +1.2%
1968 82 years +1.2%
1969 83 years +1.2%
1970 84 years +1.2%
1971 85 years +1.2%
1972 86 years +1.2%
1973 87 years +1.2%
1974 88 years +1.1%
1975 89 years +1.1%
1976 90 years +1.1%
1977 91 years +1.1%
1978 92 years +1.1%
1979 93 years +1.1%
1980 94 years +1.1%
1981 95 years +1.1%
1982 96 years +1.1%
1983 97 years +1.0%
1984 98 years +1.0%
1985 99 years +1.0%
1986 100 years +1.0%
1987 101 years +1.0%
1988 102 years +1.0%
1989 103 years +1.0%
1990 104 years +1.0%
1991 105 years +1.0%
1992 106 years +1.0%
1993 107 years +0.9%
1994 108 years +0.9%
1995 109 years +0.9%
1996 110 years +0.9%
1997 111 years +0.9%
1998 112 years +0.9%
1999 113 years +0.9%
2000 114 years +0.9%
2001 115 years +0.9%
2002 116 years +0.9%
2003 117 years +0.9%
2004 118 years +0.9%
2005 119 years +0.8%
2006 120 years +0.8%
2007 121 years +0.8%
2008 122 years +0.8%
2009 123 years +0.8%
2010 124 years +0.8%
2011 125 years +0.8%
2012 126 years +0.8%
2013 127 years +0.8%
2014 128 years +0.8%
2015 129 years +0.8%
2016 130 years +0.8%
2017 131 years +0.8%
2018 132 years +0.8%
2019 133 years +0.8%
2020 134 years +0.8%
2021 135 years +0.7%
2022 136 years +0.7%
2023 137 years +0.7%
2024 138 years +0.7%
2025 139 years +0.7%

New Zealand compared with similar countries

  • New Zealand's 139 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 63.5 years, 2.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • New Zealand's 139 years is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 25 years, 5.6× the median. (13 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in New Zealand 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.

YearChange FromTo
1888 +100.0% 1 years 2 years
1889 +50.0% 2 years 3 years
1890 +33.3% 3 years 4 years
1891 +25.0% 4 years 5 years

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1880s 2 years 1 years 3 years 3
1890s 8.5 years 4 years 13 years 10
1900s 18.5 years 14 years 23 years 10
1910s 28.5 years 24 years 33 years 10
1920s 38.5 years 34 years 43 years 10
1930s 48.5 years 44 years 53 years 10
1940s 58.5 years 54 years 63 years 10
1950s 68.5 years 64 years 73 years 10
1960s 78.5 years 74 years 83 years 10
1970s 88.5 years 84 years 93 years 10
1980s 98.5 years 94 years 103 years 10
1990s 108.5 years 104 years 113 years 10
2000s 118.5 years 114 years 123 years 10
2010s 128.5 years 124 years 133 years 10
2020s 136.5 years 134 years 139 years 6

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 1 Switzerland 177 years compare
  2. 2 Australia 168 years compare
  3. 4 Iceland 122 years compare
  4. 5 United Kingdom 107 years compare
  5. 6 United States 106 years compare

See the full ranking of 111 places →

More social development data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is age of electoral democracy in New Zealand?
Age of electoral democracy in New Zealand was 139 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 139 years in 2025.
What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1887.
How does New Zealand rank for age of electoral democracy?
New Zealand ranks 3rd out of 111 countries with data for 2025.
Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is up 7.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this New Zealand 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.

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Age of electoral democracy in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 07 November 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/age-of-electoral-democracy/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Age of electoral democracy
Unit
years
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
111 places, 5,296 data points, 1849–2025
Last refreshed

Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.