Key features of electoral democracy in Japan
Japan: Key features of electoral democracy was 0.819 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.819
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
24th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.854
in 2009
All-time low
0.025
in 1789
Years of data
237
1789–2025
Key features of electoral democracy in Japan, 1789–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Japan recorded 0.819 for key features of electoral democracy in 2025.
The figure is down 0.4% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, key features of electoral democracy in Japan peaked at 0.854 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.025, in 1789.
That places Japan 24th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0.025 | 0.025 | 0.025 | 1 |
| 1790s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1800s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1810s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1820s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1830s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1840s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1850s | 0.029 | 0.029 | 0.029 | 10 |
| 1860s | 0.0315 | 0.029 | 0.047 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0.083 | 0.083 | 0.083 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0.083 | 0.083 | 0.083 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0.155 | 0.129 | 0.166 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.173 | 0.171 | 0.175 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.177 | 0.174 | 0.184 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.1964 | 0.185 | 0.211 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.1909 | 0.167 | 0.205 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.2313 | 0.137 | 0.372 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.7018 | 0.375 | 0.829 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.8305 | 0.829 | 0.831 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.8352 | 0.832 | 0.838 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.8355 | 0.834 | 0.838 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.8369 | 0.835 | 0.839 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.8429 | 0.838 | 0.854 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8299 | 0.815 | 0.852 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8242 | 0.819 | 0.831 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More social development data for Japan
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 42,450 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 56 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh 1 (2025)
- Democracy lexical 1 (2025)
- Human rights index vs electoral democracy index 0.925 (2025)
- Liberal democracy index 0.734 (2025)
- Electoral democracy index 0.819 (2025)
- Freedom of association index 0.924 (2025)
- Freedom of expression index 0.847 (2025)
- Participatory democracy index 0.526 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is key features of electoral democracy in Japan?
- Key features of electoral democracy in Japan was 0.819 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest key features of electoral democracy recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 0.854 in 2009.
- What is the lowest key features of electoral democracy recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.025 in 1789.
- How does Japan rank for key features of electoral democracy?
- Japan ranks 24th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is key features of electoral democracy rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Key features 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).