Citizen support for democracy in Pakistan
Pakistan: Citizen support for democracy was -1.81 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Citizen support for democracy in Pakistan, 1997–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for citizen support for democracy in Pakistan is -1.81, measured in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 11.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen support for democracy in Pakistan peaked at -0.2793 in 2001 and was at its lowest, -1.82, in 2018.
That places Pakistan 143rd out of 144 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -0.6334 | -0.7499 | -0.5177 | 3 |
| 2000s | -1.2 | -1.72 | -0.2793 | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.65 | -1.82 | -1.49 | 10 |
| 2020s | -1.81 | -1.81 | -1.81 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Pakistan
More social development data for Pakistan
- Political Rights Rating 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 1.16 million (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 90,497 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.302 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.559 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.495 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.302 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.192 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.176 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is citizen support for democracy in Pakistan?
- Citizen support for democracy in Pakistan was -1.81 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen support for democracy recorded in Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was -0.2793 in 2001.
- What is the lowest citizen support for democracy recorded in Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.82 in 2018.
- How does Pakistan rank for citizen support for democracy?
- Pakistan ranks 143rd out of 144 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen support for democracy rising or falling in Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Pakistan 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 — 24 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.