Age of liberal democracy in Ireland
Ireland: Age of liberal democracy was 102 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
102 years
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
6th
of 47 countries
All-time high
102 years
in 2025
All-time low
1 years
in 1924
Years of data
102
1924–2025
Age of liberal democracy in Ireland, 1924–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 102 years for age of liberal democracy in 2025. That is the highest value across all 102 years on record.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 10.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of liberal democracy in Ireland peaked at 102 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1924.
Ireland ranks 6th of 47 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 liberal democracy in Ireland, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1924 | 1 years | — |
| 1925 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1926 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1927 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1928 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1929 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1930 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1931 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1932 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1933 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1934 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1935 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1936 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1937 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1938 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1939 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1940 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1941 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1942 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1943 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1944 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1945 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1946 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1947 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1948 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1949 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1950 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1951 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1952 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1953 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1954 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1955 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1956 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1957 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1958 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1959 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1960 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1961 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1962 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1963 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1964 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1965 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1966 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 1967 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 1968 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 1969 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 1970 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 1971 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 1972 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 1973 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 1975 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 1976 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 1978 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 1979 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 1981 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 1982 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 1983 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 1984 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 1986 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 1989 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 67 years | +1.5% |
| 1991 | 68 years | +1.5% |
| 1992 | 69 years | +1.5% |
| 1993 | 70 years | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 71 years | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 72 years | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 73 years | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 74 years | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 75 years | +1.4% |
| 1999 | 76 years | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 77 years | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 78 years | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 79 years | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 80 years | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 81 years | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 82 years | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 83 years | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 84 years | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 85 years | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 86 years | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 87 years | +1.2% |
| 2011 | 88 years | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 89 years | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 90 years | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 91 years | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 92 years | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 93 years | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 94 years | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 95 years | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 96 years | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 97 years | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 98 years | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 99 years | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 100 years | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 101 years | +1.0% |
| 2025 | 102 years | +1.0% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 102 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 45 years, 2.3× the median. (40 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 102 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 51 years, 2.0× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of liberal democracy in Ireland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1926 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1927 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1928 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 3.5 years | 1 years | 6 years | 6 |
| 1930s | 11.5 years | 7 years | 16 years | 10 |
| 1940s | 21.5 years | 17 years | 26 years | 10 |
| 1950s | 31.5 years | 27 years | 36 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 41.5 years | 37 years | 46 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 51.5 years | 47 years | 56 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 61.5 years | 57 years | 66 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 71.5 years | 67 years | 76 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 81.5 years | 77 years | 86 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 91.5 years | 87 years | 96 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 99.5 years | 97 years | 102 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More social development data for Ireland
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 137,869 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 69 (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 69 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0251 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 liberal democracy in Ireland?
- Age of liberal democracy in Ireland was 102 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of liberal democracy recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 102 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of liberal democracy recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1924.
- How does Ireland rank for age of liberal democracy?
- Ireland ranks 6th out of 47 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of liberal democracy rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 102 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.