Citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Citizen support for democracy was 0.6014 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka, 2003–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2020, citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka stood at 0.6014.
The figure is down 0.4% on the previous year and up 112.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka peaked at 0.6167 in 2014 and was at its lowest, -0.2828, in 2005.
That places Sri Lanka 29th out of 144 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
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 | -0.1195 | -0.2828 | 0.1695 | 7 |
| 2010s | 0.5461 | 0.2824 | 0.6167 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6014 | 0.6014 | 0.6014 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More social development data for Sri Lanka
- Political Rights Rating 3 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 213 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 148,369 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.783 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.871 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.853 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.783 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.52 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.613 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka?
- Citizen support for democracy in Sri Lanka was 0.6014 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen support for democracy recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 0.6167 in 2014.
- What is the lowest citizen support for democracy recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.2828 in 2005.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for citizen support for democracy?
- Sri Lanka ranks 29th out of 144 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen support for democracy rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 112.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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 — 18 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.