Electoral democracy in Iceland
Iceland: Electoral democracy was 1 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Electoral democracy in Iceland, 1844–2025
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for electoral democracy in Iceland is 1, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 182 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, electoral democracy in Iceland peaked at 1 in 1918 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1844.
That places Iceland 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.2 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 1920s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1930s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1940s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1950s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1960s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
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More social development data for Iceland
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 8,459 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 0 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.807 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.846 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.917 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.807 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.565 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.72 (2025)
- Varieties of democracy 0.807 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is electoral democracy in Iceland?
- Electoral democracy in Iceland was 1 in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest electoral democracy recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 1 in 1918.
- What is the lowest electoral democracy recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1844.
- How does Iceland rank for electoral democracy?
- Iceland ranks 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is electoral democracy rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iceland data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Electoral democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 182 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Identifies the political regime of a country using the reduced Lexical Index of Electoral Democracy. It distinguishes between non-electoral autocracies, one-party autocracies, multi-party autocracies without elected executive, multi-party autocracies, exclusive democracies, male democracies, and electoral democracies (including full democracies or polyarchies).