Citizen support for democracy in South Korea
South Korea: Citizen support for democracy was -0.113 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Citizen support for democracy in South Korea, 1996–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for citizen support for democracy in South Korea is -0.113, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.4% on the previous year and down 133.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen support for democracy in South Korea peaked at 1.12 in 1996 and was at its lowest, -0.113, in 2020.
That places South Korea 63rd out of 144 countries with data for 2020, putting it 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 South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1.12 | — |
| 1997 | 0.9964 | -11.1% |
| 1998 | 0.8655 | -13.1% |
| 1999 | 0.7391 | -14.6% |
| 2000 | 0.6268 | -15.2% |
| 2001 | 0.511 | -18.5% |
| 2002 | 0.2774 | -45.7% |
| 2003 | 0.2385 | -14.0% |
| 2004 | 0.198 | -17.0% |
| 2005 | 0.336 | +69.7% |
| 2006 | 0.3225 | -4.0% |
| 2007 | 0.3301 | +2.3% |
| 2008 | 0.3402 | +3.1% |
| 2009 | 0.338 | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 0.3404 | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 0.3724 | +9.4% |
| 2012 | 0.3387 | -9.0% |
| 2013 | 0.3026 | -10.7% |
| 2014 | 0.2712 | -10.4% |
| 2015 | 0.2433 | -10.3% |
| 2016 | 0.1999 | -17.8% |
| 2017 | 0.1532 | -23.4% |
| 2018 | -0.1122 | -173.2% |
| 2019 | -0.1114 | -0.7% |
| 2020 | -0.113 | +1.4% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's -0.113 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.3338. (50 countries reporting)
- South Korea's -0.113 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is -0.4405, 26% of the median. (14 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Citizen support for democracy in South Korea 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | -173.2% | 0.1532 | -0.1122 |
| 2005 | +69.7% | 0.198 | 0.336 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.9305 | 0.7391 | 1.12 | 4 |
| 2000s | 0.3518 | 0.198 | 0.6268 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.1998 | -0.1122 | 0.3724 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.113 | -0.113 | -0.113 | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More social development data for South Korea
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 4,407 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 117 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (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 117 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 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 South Korea?
- Citizen support for democracy in South Korea was -0.113 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen support for democracy recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.12 in 1996.
- What is the lowest citizen support for democracy recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.113 in 2020.
- How does South Korea rank for citizen support for democracy?
- South Korea ranks 63rd out of 144 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen support for democracy rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 133.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Korea 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 — 25 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.