What is electoral democracy in Bulgaria?

Electoral democracy in Bulgaria was 2 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest electoral democracy recorded in Bulgaria?

The highest recorded value was 2 in 1990.

What is the lowest electoral democracy recorded in Bulgaria?

The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1789.

How does Bulgaria rank for electoral democracy?

Bulgaria ranks 1st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is electoral democracy rising or falling in Bulgaria?

Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this Bulgaria data come from?

The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Electoral democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Electoral democracy in Bulgaria

Name: Electoral democracy in Bulgaria
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Bulgaria: Electoral democracy was 2 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

1st

of 176 countries

All-time high

in 1990

All-time low

in 1789

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Electoral democracy in Bulgaria, 1789–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

Bulgaria recorded 2 for electoral democracy in 2025. That is the highest value across all 237 years on record.

The figure is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, electoral democracy in Bulgaria peaked at 2 in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1789.

That places Bulgaria 1st out of 176 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
1780s	0	0	0	1
1790s	0	0	0	10
1800s	0	0	0	10
1810s	0	0	0	10
1820s	0	0	0	10
1830s	0	0	0	10
1840s	0	0	0	10
1850s	0	0	0	10
1860s	0	0	0	10
1870s	0	0	0	10
1880s	0.1	0	1	10
1890s	0	0	0	10
1900s	0	0	0	10
1910s	0	0	0	10
1920s	0	0	0	10
1930s	0	0	0	10
1940s	0.6	0	1	10
1950s	0	0	0	10
1960s	0	0	0	10
1970s	0	0	0	10
1980s	0	0	0	10
1990s	2	2	2	10
2000s	2	2	2	10
2010s	2	2	2	10
2020s	2	2	2	6

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Bulgaria

Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 105,596 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 533 (2025)
Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
Key features of democracy 0.599 (2025)
Freedom of Expression Index 0.754 (2025)
Freedom of Association Index 0.833 (2025)
Electoral Democracy Index 0.599 (2025)
Participatory Democracy Index 0.397 (2025)
Liberal Democracy Index 0.499 (2025)

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is electoral democracy in Bulgaria?: Electoral democracy in Bulgaria was 2 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest electoral democracy recorded in Bulgaria?: The highest recorded value was 2 in 1990.
What is the lowest electoral democracy recorded in Bulgaria?: The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1789.
How does Bulgaria rank for electoral democracy?: Bulgaria ranks 1st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is electoral democracy rising or falling in Bulgaria?: Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Bulgaria data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (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 — 237 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Electoral democracy
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,594 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Identifies the political regime of a country using the Regimes of the World classification by political scientists Anna Lührmann, Marcus Tannenberg and Staffan Lindberg.