Citizen support for democracy in China
China: Citizen support for democracy was 0.3027 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Citizen support for democracy in China, 2001–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for citizen support for democracy in China is 0.3027, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 20 years on record.
The figure is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 137.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen support for democracy in China peaked at 0.3027 in 2020 and was at its lowest, -0.9518, in 2007.
China ranks 40th of 144 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | -0.7149 | -0.9518 | -0.5885 | 9 |
| 2010s | -0.196 | -0.8053 | 0.3018 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.3027 | 0.3027 | 0.3027 | 1 |
Countries ranked near China
More social development data for China
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 230 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 153,962 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.072 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.045 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.03 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.072 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.036 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.039 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is citizen support for democracy in China?
- Citizen support for democracy in China was 0.3027 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen support for democracy recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 0.3027 in 2020.
- What is the lowest citizen support for democracy recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.9518 in 2007.
- How does China rank for citizen support for democracy?
- China ranks 40th out of 144 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen support for democracy rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 137.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Citizen support for democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the average extent to which citizens support a democratic political system and reject autocratic alternatives. It combines responses across more than one thousand nationally-representative surveys on how desirable citizens find democracy, how they evaluate undemocratic alternatives (such as a strong unelected leader, the army, or religious authorities), and how they assess democratic and autocratic political systems relative to another.