Political Rights Rating in Western Sahara
Western Sahara: Political Rights Rating was 7 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Political Rights Rating in Western Sahara, 1989–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, political rights rating in Western Sahara stood at 7. That is the highest value across all 37 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights rating in Western Sahara peaked at 7 in 1992 and was at its lowest, 5, in 1989.
Western Sahara ranks 1st of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 37 years of available data.
Political Rights Rating in Western Sahara, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 5 | — |
| 1990 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 1992 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 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 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 7 | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| 1990s | 6.7 | 5 | 7 | 10 |
| 2000s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 10 |
| 2010s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 10 |
| 2020s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Western Sahara
- 1 Afghanistan 7 compare
- 1 Azerbaijan 7 compare
- 1 Bahrain 7 compare
- 1 Belarus 7 compare
- 1 Burkina Faso 7 compare
- 1 Burundi 7 compare
- 1 Cambodia 7 compare
- 1 Central African Republic 7 compare
- 1 Chad 7 compare
- 1 China 7 compare
- 1 Congo 7 compare
- 1 Cuba 7 compare
- 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 7 compare
- 1 Djibouti 7 compare
- 1 Equatorial Guinea 7 compare
- 1 Eritrea 7 compare
- 1 Eswatini 7 compare
- 1 Gabon 7 compare
- 1 Haiti 7 compare
- 1 Iran 7 compare
- 1 Kazakhstan 7 compare
- 1 Kyrgyzstan 7 compare
- 1 Laos 7 compare
- 1 Libya 7 compare
- 1 Mali 7 compare
- 1 Myanmar 7 compare
- 1 Nicaragua 7 compare
- 1 Niger 7 compare
- 1 North Korea 7 compare
- 1 Russia 7 compare
- 1 Saudi Arabia 7 compare
- 1 Somalia 7 compare
- 1 South Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Syria 7 compare
- 1 Tajikistan 7 compare
- 1 Turkmenistan 7 compare
- 1 United Arab Emirates 7 compare
- 1 Uzbekistan 7 compare
- 1 Venezuela 7 compare
- 1 Vietnam 7 compare
- 1 Yemen 7 compare
More social development data for Western Sahara
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Political Rights Score -3 (2025)
- Freedom Score 4 (2025)
- Full democracy 0 (2025)
- Number of armed conflicts 0 conflicts (2025)
- Number of state-based conflicts 0 conflicts (2025)
- Countries where armed conflicts took place 0 (2025)
- Terrorist attacks by severity 0 attacks (2021)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights rating in Western Sahara?
- Political rights rating in Western Sahara was 7 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights rating recorded in Western Sahara?
- The highest recorded value was 7 in 1992.
- What is the lowest political rights rating recorded in Western Sahara?
- The lowest recorded value was 5 in 1989.
- How does Western Sahara rank for political rights rating?
- Western Sahara ranks 1st out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights rating rising or falling in Western Sahara?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Western Sahara 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.
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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.