Democracy Assessment

International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment team produces the work that makes up the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Initiative. The Initiative’s primary knowledge products are the annual Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Report, Democracy Tracker and the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Indices. The Initiative also includes regional partnership networks and research and advocacy related to Sustainable Development Goal 16.

The annual Global State of Democracy Report provides an overview of the global and regional trends related to democracy and human rights, along with policy recommendations to support and extend democratic values and around the world.

Democracy Tracker provides monthly, qualitative data on key events with the potential to impact the state of democracy and human rights in 173 countries. The tool highlights how each event affects specific aspects of democracy and provides users with context-based analysis. Each event report indicates a positive, static, or negative development with regard to democratic performance. Past updates are available as a searchable and downloadable archive.

The Global State of Democracy Indices (GSoD Indices) measure performance across a broad range of indicators of democracy, covering 173 countries from 1975–2022. The GSoD Indices are built on a theoretical framework that organizes specific aspects of democratic performance into four categories: Representation, Rights, Rule of Law, and Participation.

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Our work

Democracy Tracker

Qualitative, monthly updates on events that impact democracy at the country level.

Explore the Democracy Tracker

Global State of Democracy Indices

Attributes, subattributes and data behind the annual GSoD report.

Explore the GSoD Indices.

Global State of Democracy Reports

Our flagship publication, providing a data-driven global and regional analysis of how democracy has fared over the last year, supplemented by actionable policy recommendations.

View our reports.

Democracy Notes Blog

Read our team’s takes on the latest democracy-related developments around the world

Read the Democracy Notes.

From the Democracy Tracker

In a historic first, former President Donald Trump was indicted on 1st August on federal charges related to efforts to overturn the 2020 elections. This is the third criminal indictment he faces.

Explore the Democracy Tracker

Our experts

Seema Shah - Head of Democracy Assessment

Head of Democracy Assessment

Dr Seema Shah is the Head of International IDEA's Democracy Assessment (DA) Unit , which produces a biennial 'Global State of Democracy' report, an annually updated Global State of Democracy Indices and a EU-co-funded Covid-19 Global Monitor on…

Alexander Hudson - Senior Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Senior Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Dr Alexander Hudson is a Senior Adviser in the Democracy Assessment Unit of International IDEA’s Global Programmes in Stockholm. As part of the team that produces the Global State of Democracy Indices and Global State of Democracy Report, Hudson…

Atsuko Hirakawa - Programme Officer, Democracy Tracker Coordinator

Programme Officer, Democracy Tracker Coordinator

Atsuko Hirakawa is the Programme Officer, Democracy Tracker Coordinator at International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment Unit.Previously she was Programme Officer and Gender Focal Point for International IDEA's Support to Electoral Processes and…

Gentiana Gola - Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Gentiana Gola is an Adviser for Europe in the Democracy Assessment (DA) team at International IDEA. Her role focuses on research and analysis, communication, outreach, and coordination in support of the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) programme…

Maria Angeles Morales González - Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Adviser, Democracy Assessment

María Ángeles Morales González is an Adviser in International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment Unit, focused on democracy and human rights research and analysis in the Americas region. Maria joined International IDEA in August 2022.During her…

Michael Runey - Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Adviser, Democracy Assessment

Michael Runey is an Adviser in the Democracy Assessment team of Global Programmes, where he contributes in research, analysis, communication, and coordination in support of the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) initiative.Prior to joining…

Emily Bloom - Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Emily Bloom is an Associate Programme Officer for Democracy Assessment, Global Programmes.Emily in her daily work, will be furthering the Democracy Assessment team’s research, analysis and communications within the Global State of Democracy (GSoD)…

Emma Kenny - Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Emma Kenny is an Associate Programme Officer of the Democracy Assessment (DA) Unit. Her work focuses on providing research, analysis, and communications support for the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Programme. Her research is principally focused…

Maria Santillana - Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Santillana is an Associate Programme Officer at the Democracy Assessment (DA) Unit. She contributes to research, analysis, project management and strategic communications for the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) initiative. Her research is…

David Towriss - Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

Associate Programme Officer, Democracy Assessment

David Towriss is an Associate Programme Officer in International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment Unit, where he works as part of the team producing the Global Monitor on Democracy and Human Rights. His research is principally focused on Democracy and…

Naomi Malaki - Senior Finance and Administrative Officer, Democracy Assessment

Senior Finance and Administrative Officer, Democracy Assessment

Naomi Malaki is the Senior Finance and Administrative Officer for the Democracy Assessment Unit of the Global Programmes.

Democracy Assessment

Our work

From the Democracy Tracker

Democracy Notes - Blogs on current events

Q&A: Sri Lankan Democracy with Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu

South Sudan’s Electoral Dilemma: What Lies Ahead?

Stability or Elections: A look into Qatar's 2024 Constitutional Referendum

(Re)balancing power in Mexico?

Q&A with Zaid Al-Ali: From constitution-building to peacebuilding in Yemen

2024 Election Super-Cycle: A Key Moment for Gender Equality?

سؤال وجواب مع زيد العلي: من بناء الدستور إلى بناء السلام في اليمن

Q&A: Md Abdul ALIM on democratic reforms in Bangladesh post-Hasina

The Global State of Democracy in the year of elections

Lo que el legado de Fujimori enseña a América Latina cuando se intercambia democracia por seguridad

What Fujimori’s legacy teaches Latin America about trading democracy for security

Latin America’s “Achilles’ heel”: An interview with expert Dr Dinorah Azpuru, on the rule of law, democracy and democratic education in the region

El “Talón de Aquiles” de América Latina: Una entrevista con la experta Dra. Dinorah Azpuru, sobre el estado de derecho, democracia y educación democrática en la región

The past is the...present? How interpretations of the past are shaping democracy in Europe

Populist parties and their voters: a PODS analytical brief

The colonial legacy of homophobia in modern-day Uganda

Thailand’s Senate Elections Results: What now?

Why Should We Care About Citizens' Perceptions of Democracy?

¿Por qué deberíamos preocuparnos por las percepciones de los ciudadanos sobre la democracia?

Explainer: Syria’s 2024 legislative elections

Slow and steady wins the race? Not always – and why democracies should be worried

Explainer: What has changed and what has stayed the same in Venezuela’s presidential election

What's at stake in Thailand's senate elections?

Explainer: Mexico’s largest elections yet

Who should speak authoritatively for democracy?

Perceptions of violence in democracies: A PODS analytical brief

How South Africa’s elections may reshape its democracy

Explainer: How Thailand's Senate Elections Work

Perceptions of democracy and the danger of authoritarian exploitation

Where have all the youth gone? A Madrid protest reflects disaffection and polarization

Explicamos: Desafíos y oportunidades para la República Dominicana en la era de Luis Abinader

Explainer: Challenges and Opportunities for the Dominican Republic in the Era of Luis Abinader

¿Son compatibles la democracia representativa y la igualdad de género?

Are gender equality and democracy compatible?

Beyond the Battlefield: How gender-based violence in the Israel-Gaza conflict is a reproductive rights crisis

The Primacy of Primaries: How Super Tuesday Shapes Democracy

Should we pay attention to Russian elections?

How to make sense of the electoral situation in Senegal

Democracy without Borders

Explainer: Presidential Primaries in the United States

A Tale of Two Europes - Paths of Older and Newer Democracies Diverge

Is Poland’s democratic backsliding over? History shows it takes more than an election

Q&A: Kunthida Rungruengkiat on the State of Democracy in Thailand and Moving Forward

Where Environmental Defenders are Criminalized, Democracy Suffers

Indigenous inclusion for a more democratic global climate regime

The State of Democracy in Asia and the Pacific 2023

The Global State of Democracy in 2023: A new set of checks and balances paves the way ahead

Explainer: Advances in LGBTQIA+ rights across Asia and the Pacific

Two more coups in Africa: similarities, differences, and what comes next

Exclusión y descontento: elecciones Guatemala 2023

Explainer: What historic local elections mean for democracy in Somalia

Kosovo’s democracy has come a long way, but it needs support

Simple, reliable democracy data: Introducing Global State of Democracy Indices v7

Courts, power politics and parallels: Can Imran Khan hold on in Pakistan?

Can Turkey have credible elections? What the data reveal

What can stop backsliding? Let’s start with the economy

Explainer: The Crucial Fight for Legal Gender Recognition

Why restricting the right to strike can make governments less responsive

Explicamos: El impacto del ‘Plan B’ en las elecciones mexicanas

The Transformational Potential of Putting Gender Equality at the Centre of Democracy

Democracies can’t afford to exclude women from the fight against climate change

Map: Analysing progress and setbacks for gender equality in Europe

Q&A: Olufunto Akinduro on Nigeria's 2023 Elections—and Democracy as the Future

Explainer: Inside Eswatini’s Struggle for Democracy

Sri Lanka's Long Road to Democratic Reform: A Conversation with Bhavani Fonseka

Elecciones 2023 en América Latina: ¿promesas de cambio?

Navigating the Waves of Democracy in Thailand's 2023 Election

New Report: Democracy in Asia and the Pacific Outlook 2023

Pakistan’s crisis shows that all politics are climate politics

The risk of “creating a monster”: An interview with constitutional expert Yaniv Roznai on judicial reform in Israel

Where do Western Balkan countries really stand on democratic performance?

Defining moments for democracy in Europe in 2022

The new model of coups d'état in Africa: Younger, less violent, more popular

Protecting Hungary from Itself: The Limitations of Forcing Compliance

Prove Putin wrong, listen to Tchaikovsky

Why paying women for being women is good for everyone

Sri Lanka’s President and Prime Minister to Resign Amidst Protests: Democracy in Action and Challenges Ahead 