Electoral democracy in Samoa
Samoa: Electoral democracy was 1 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Electoral democracy in Samoa, 1902–2025
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for electoral democracy in Samoa is 1, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 124 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, electoral democracy in Samoa peaked at 1 in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1902.
That places Samoa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 1910s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
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More social development data for Samoa
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 17 (2025)
- Physical Integrity Rights Score 2.92 (2019)
- Asylum-seekers by country or territory of origin 496 (2025)
- Political Rights Score 32 (2025)
- Freedom Score 84 (2025)
- Sovereign state 1 (2025)
- States involved in state-based conflicts 0 (2025)
- Full democracy 1 (2025)
- Number of armed conflicts 0 conflicts (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is electoral democracy in Samoa?
- Electoral democracy in Samoa was 1 in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest electoral democracy recorded in Samoa?
- The highest recorded value was 1 in 1990.
- What is the lowest electoral democracy recorded in Samoa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1902.
- How does Samoa rank for electoral democracy?
- Samoa ranks 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is electoral democracy rising or falling in Samoa?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Samoa 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
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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).