Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Spain
Spain: Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) was 48 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of electoral democracy in Spain, 1932–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2025, age of electoral democracy in Spain stood at 48 years. That is the highest value across all 52 years on record.
The figure is up 2.1% on the previous year and up 26.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Spain peaked at 48 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1932.
That places Spain 29th out of 111 countries with data for 2025, putting it 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 (V-Dem) in Spain, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1932 | 1 years | — |
| 1933 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1934 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1935 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1978 | 1 years | -75.0% |
| 1979 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1980 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1981 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1982 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1983 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1984 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1985 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1986 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1987 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1988 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1989 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1990 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1991 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1992 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1993 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1994 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1995 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1996 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1997 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1998 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1999 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 2000 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 2001 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 2002 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 2008 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 2009 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 2010 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 2018 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 2019 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 2020 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 2021 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 2022 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 2023 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 2024 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 2025 | 48 years | +2.1% |
Spain compared with similar countries
- Spain's 48 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 63.5 years, 76% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Spain's 48 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 36 years, 1.3× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Spain 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1979 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1978 | -75.0% | 4 years | 1 years |
| 1934 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1980 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1935 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 2.5 years | 1 years | 4 years | 4 |
| 1970s | 1.5 years | 1 years | 2 years | 2 |
| 1980s | 7.5 years | 3 years | 12 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.5 years | 13 years | 22 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 27.5 years | 23 years | 32 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 37.5 years | 33 years | 42 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 45.5 years | 43 years | 48 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More social development data for Spain
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 511,079 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 186 (2025)
- 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)
- 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 186 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0104 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 Spain?
- Age of electoral democracy in Spain was 48 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 48 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1932.
- How does Spain rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Spain ranks 29th out of 111 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is up 26.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Spain 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.