Political Rights Rating in Iraq
Iraq: Political Rights Rating was 5 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
5
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
64th
of 199 countries
All-time high
7
in 1972
All-time low
5
in 2009
Years of data
53
1972–2025
Political Rights Rating in Iraq, 1972–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Iraq recorded 5 for political rights rating in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 53 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights rating in Iraq peaked at 7 in 1972 and was at its lowest, 5, in 2009.
Iraq ranks 64th of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Political Rights Rating in Iraq, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 7 | — |
| 1973 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 1982 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1985 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 2006 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2010 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 2013 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2014 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 2015 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2016 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 5 | +0.0% |
Iraq compared with similar countries
- Iraq's 5 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3, 1.7× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Iraq's 5 is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 6, 83% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| 1980s | 6.67 | 6 | 7 | 9 |
| 1990s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.4 | 5 | 7 | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.2 | 5 | 6 | 10 |
| 2020s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iraq
- 64 Bangladesh 5 compare
- 64 Bosnia and Herzegovina 5 compare
- 64 Comoros 5 compare
- 64 Cote d'Ivoire 5 compare
- 64 El Salvador 5 compare
- 64 Jordan 5 compare
- 64 Lebanon 5 compare
- 64 Madagascar 5 compare
- 64 Mauritania 5 compare
- 64 Morocco 5 compare
- 64 Mozambique 5 compare
- 64 Pakistan 5 compare
- 64 Turkey 5 compare
- 64 USSR 5 compare
More social development data for Iraq
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 322,345 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 270,671 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0058 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 270,671 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0069 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1.22 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights rating in Iraq?
- Political rights rating in Iraq was 5 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights rating recorded in Iraq?
- The highest recorded value was 7 in 1972.
- What is the lowest political rights rating recorded in Iraq?
- The lowest recorded value was 5 in 2009.
- How does Iraq rank for political rights rating?
- Iraq ranks 64th out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights rating rising or falling in Iraq?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iraq data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Rights Rating. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Identifies the extent of free and fair elections, political pluralism and participation, and a functioning government. Lower ratings indicate more rights.