Citizen support for democracy in El Salvador
El Salvador: Citizen support for democracy was -0.7299 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Citizen support for democracy in El Salvador, 1996–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for citizen support for democracy in El Salvador is -0.7299, measured in 2020.
The figure is up 21.8% on the previous year and down 106.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen support for democracy in El Salvador peaked at 0.1586 in 1998 and was at its lowest, -1.13, in 2018.
El Salvador ranks 94th 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.
Citizen support for democracy in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 0.0155 | — |
| 1997 | 0.1299 | +740.0% |
| 1998 | 0.1586 | +22.1% |
| 1999 | -0.3039 | -291.7% |
| 2000 | -0.4726 | +55.5% |
| 2001 | -0.9562 | +102.3% |
| 2002 | -0.9369 | -2.0% |
| 2003 | -0.854 | -8.8% |
| 2004 | -0.5908 | -30.8% |
| 2005 | -0.5186 | -12.2% |
| 2006 | -0.6786 | +30.9% |
| 2007 | -0.72 | +6.1% |
| 2008 | -0.4886 | -32.1% |
| 2009 | -0.1531 | -68.7% |
| 2010 | -0.3529 | +130.6% |
| 2011 | -0.4402 | +24.7% |
| 2012 | -0.6793 | +54.3% |
| 2013 | -0.6213 | -8.6% |
| 2014 | -0.6711 | +8.0% |
| 2015 | -0.8971 | +33.7% |
| 2016 | -1.05 | +16.7% |
| 2017 | -1.1 | +5.3% |
| 2018 | -1.13 | +2.7% |
| 2019 | -0.9328 | -17.6% |
| 2020 | -0.7299 | -21.8% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's -0.7299 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is -0.9114, 80% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's -0.7299 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is -0.7907, 92% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Citizen support for democracy in El Salvador 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | +740.0% | 0.0155 | 0.1299 |
| 1999 | -291.7% | 0.1586 | -0.3039 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -0 | -0.3039 | 0.1586 | 4 |
| 2000s | -0.6369 | -0.9562 | -0.1531 | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.7876 | -1.13 | -0.3529 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.7299 | -0.7299 | -0.7299 | 1 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More social development data for El Salvador
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 182 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 68,182 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 5 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0107 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 68,182 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is citizen support for democracy in El Salvador?
- Citizen support for democracy in El Salvador was -0.7299 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen support for democracy recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 0.1586 in 1998.
- What is the lowest citizen support for democracy recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.13 in 2018.
- How does El Salvador rank for citizen support for democracy?
- El Salvador ranks 94th out of 144 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen support for democracy rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 106.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this El Salvador 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.
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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.