EIP · Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index
Electoral integrity by country
How well did each country's most recent national election meet international standards, in the eyes of election experts?
Of the 171 countries compared in the 2025 edition, Sweden had the highest reading, 88.605, and Iraq had the lowest reading, 12.865. In the middle country the figure was 54.781.
Part ofDemocracy & Civil Liberties
Electoral integrity · the 2025 edition
Key statistic · Democracy & Civil Liberties
Highest of 171Sweden
88.60501the 2025 edition · values only
Who leads
The three countries at the highest end of 171 compared, the three at the other end, and the first on each continent.
1Photo: User:Pieter Kuiper · Public domain, greyscale
2Photo: User:Aconcagua · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
3Photo: Hansueli Krapf · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
Highest on each continent
- Africa
Cabo Verde77.257 - Americas
Costa Rica81.196 - Asia
Israel80.360 - EuropeSweden88.605
- Oceania
New Zealand74.640 - Every region
02Every measured country
Electoral integrity on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a higher value — the better end.
- 12.865–37.245
- 37.632–48.939
- 50.179–60.232
- 60.653–70.885
- 71.070–88.605
- No reading in the 2025 edition
- Europe
71.649
the middle country, of 39 measured · 49 members
Sweden88.605
Belarus20.920Highest and lowest reading in Europe.
- Oceania
60.120
the middle country, of 10 measured · 21 members
New Zealand74.640
Tonga39.184Highest and lowest reading in Oceania.
- Americas
59.388
the middle country, of 30 measured · 48 members
Costa Rica81.196
Venezuela14.708Highest and lowest reading in Americas.
- Asia
51.037
the middle country, of 42 measured · 52 members
Israel80.360
Iraq12.865Highest and lowest reading in Asia.
- Africa
41.801
the middle country, of 50 measured · 55 members
Cabo Verde77.257
Equatorial Guinea15.573Highest and lowest reading in Africa.
- Every region
22 sub-regions, highest middle country first
- Northern Europe
84.031
the middle country, of 10 measured · 13 members
Sweden88.605
United Kingdom63.733Highest and lowest reading in Northern Europe.
- Western Europe
75.804
the middle country, of 7 measured · 9 members
Netherlands82.101
Luxembourg68.257Highest and lowest reading in Western Europe.
- Southern Africa
63.177
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Lesotho71.866
Eswatini23.073Highest and lowest reading in Southern Africa.
- South America
61.890
the middle country, of 12 measured · 12 members
Chile80.718Venezuela14.708Highest and lowest reading in South America.
- Caribbean
60.125
the middle country, of 8 measured · 24 members
Grenada68.095
Haiti37.245Highest and lowest reading in Caribbean.
- Southern Europe
58.533
the middle country, of 12 measured · 17 members
Portugal79.632
Serbia28.534Highest and lowest reading in Southern Europe.
- Eastern Europe
56.664
the middle country, of 10 measured · 10 members
Poland76.641Belarus20.920Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Europe.
- South-eastern Asia
51.954
the middle country, of 10 measured · 11 members
Timor-Leste65.122
Cambodia17.669Highest and lowest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Southern Asia
51.736
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Bhutan62.963
Iran20.845Highest and lowest reading in Southern Asia.
- Western Africa
49.559
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
Cabo Verde77.257
Mauritania26.636Highest and lowest reading in Western Africa.
- Western Asia
48.625
the middle country, of 14 measured · 19 members
Israel80.360Iraq12.865Highest and lowest reading in Western Asia.
- Central America
46.575
the middle country, of 8 measured · 8 members
Costa Rica81.196
Nicaragua21.909Highest and lowest reading in Central America.
- Northern Africa
43.769
the middle country, of 5 measured · 6 members
Morocco63.269
Egypt20.751Highest and lowest reading in Northern Africa.
- Central Asia
40.741
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Uzbekistan50.339
Turkmenistan16.944Highest and lowest reading in Central Asia.
- Eastern Africa
33.721
the middle country, of 15 measured · 19 members
Seychelles70.069
Rwanda16.620Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Middle Africa
29.080
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
São Tomé and Príncipe67.248Equatorial Guinea15.573Highest and lowest reading in Middle Africa.
- Australia and New Zealand
2 of 2 measured — too few for a middle: Australia, New Zealand.
New Zealand74.640
Australia71.285Highest and lowest reading in Australia and New Zealand.
- Eastern Asia
4 of 8 measured — too few for a middle: Japan, Mongolia, South Korea, Taiwan.
Taiwan70.026
South Korea67.863Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Melanesia
4 of 5 measured — too few for a middle: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu.
Vanuatu65.829
Papua New Guinea48.346Highest and lowest reading in Melanesia.
- Micronesia
2 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: Kiribati, Micronesia.
Kiribati69.213
Micronesia59.086Highest and lowest reading in Micronesia.
- Northern America
2 of 4 measured — too few for a middle: Canada, United States.
Canada77.523
United States53.787Highest and lowest reading in Northern America.
- Polynesia
2 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: Samoa, Tonga.
Samoa42.244Tonga39.184Highest and lowest reading in Polynesia.
03The whole field at once
The spread
171 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 54.781; a quarter are above 68.512, and a quarter below 39.502. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 171 ever measured
Every country
In order, highest value first. No rank or position is shown: too many countries share the same value for an order to mean anything. The rows do not share a year — each is a country's latest national election, and the election year and date are part of the reading. A score can rest on a handful of expert responses; the number behind each is stored with it. Elections held before 2023 were assessed with an older, shorter questionnaire.
Showing 25 of 171 countries
Values for the 2025 edition.
05In this edition
Electoral integrity in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading
88.605
Electoral Integrity Index (0–100; higher = greater electoral integrity)
Lowest reading
12.865
Electoral Integrity Index (0–100; higher = greater electoral integrity)
06The parts of the index
Inside the number
Electoral Integrity Project (EIP) publishes the parts the headline is built from. Each part’s highest and lowest country, and its middle value.
| Part | Highest | Lowest | Middle country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contestation (0–100)171 countries |  Iceland90.27778 | Iraq7.15278 | 48.71528 |
| Participation (0–100)171 countries | Sweden95.55556 |  Comoros0.00000 | 56.25000 |
| Deliberation (0–100)171 countries |  Denmark91.25000 | 2 countries share 0.00000 | 51.38889 |
| Adjudication (0–100)171 countries |  Lithuania95.83333 |  Tanzania5.85938 | 61.45833 |
07The measure
About electoral integrity
The Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index rates how well each country's most recent national election met international standards, on a 0–100 scale, from a survey of election experts carried out after every contest. The Electoral Integrity Project builds it from four principles: whether candidates could genuinely compete, whether everyone could take part, whether voters could weigh real choices on reliable information, and whether disputes were settled fairly.
What the number is: Electoral Integrity Index (0–100; higher = greater electoral integrity).
What it does not measure
It rates one election — the country's most recent — as experts judged it, not how power is exercised between elections. A score can rest on only a few expert responses, and elections before 2023 were assessed with a shorter questionnaire.
08Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
A key statistic for Democracy & Civil Liberties
“Whether a country's most recent national election was conducted with integrity, from the electoral laws and boundaries to the count, as election experts judged it — the subject's first question, whether elections are genuine.”
- Edition used
- 2025 (data 2025)
- Countries
- 171
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
Moves with
Where electoral integrity is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Liberal Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 163 countries in commonρ 0.87
- Egalitarian Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 163 countries in commonρ 0.86
- V-Dem Electoral Democracy IndexKeyV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 163 countries in commonρ 0.84
Moves against
Where electoral integrity is higher, these tend to be lower.
- Neopatrimonial Rule IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 163 countries in commonρ −0.86
- Political Corruption IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 163 countries in commonρ −0.77
- Exclusion by Socio-Economic GroupV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 161 countries in commonρ −0.70
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 306 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
09Keep reading
Explore further
The subject
The data, edition by edition
10Questions
Electoral integrity: questions and answers
Which country has the highest electoral integrity?
Sweden, at 88.605, among the 171 countries compared in the 2025 edition.
Which country has the lowest electoral integrity?
Iraq, at 12.865, among the 171 countries compared in the 2025 edition.
How many countries does the Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index cover?
171 in the 2025 edition.
What is the world average electoral integrity?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 171 compared in the 2025 edition, the figure was 54.781.
Is this Electoral Integrity Project (EIP)’s own ranking?
No ranking is shown. Electoral Integrity Project (EIP) publishes values only, and too many countries share the same value for an ordering to mean anything, so none is derived.
How often is the Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index published?
This site holds one edition, describing 2025.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From Electoral Integrity Project (EIP), under CC BY 4.0. From the Electoral Integrity Project's own release on Harvard Dataverse, the election-level file, under CC BY 4.0. The project's reports print a ranking of their own; the file has no rank, so this page shows scores only. Freedom House scores carried in the same file are not used. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
11Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index — Electoral Integrity Project (EIP)
From the Electoral Integrity Project's own release on Harvard Dataverse, the election-level file, under CC BY 4.0. The project's reports print a ranking of their own; the file has no rank, so this page shows scores only. Freedom House scores carried in the same file are not used.
Newest edition
Report year 2025Data year not recorded
Cite the source as: Garnett, Holly Ann, Toby S. James, Sofia Caal-Lam and Darko Aleksov. 2026. Perceptions of Electoral Integrity, (PEI-12.0). Harvard Dataverse. https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/LBM4Z2
Licence: CC BY 4.0, checked 2026-09-29.
How this page reads the numbers
- No rank or position is shown: Electoral Integrity Project (EIP) publishes values only, and too many countries share the same value for an ordering to mean anything.
- Which end is better follows the publisher’s own reading of the measure.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- The file gives each country’s most recent reading, so the rows are from different years. Readings from before 2015 are listed but left out of every comparison on this page.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Photographs
The countries at the top of this statistic, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Sweden — User:Pieter Kuiper, Public domain
- Denmark — User:Aconcagua, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Iceland — Hansueli Krapf, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Electoral integrity by country: Perceptions of Electoral Integrity Index, data from Electoral Integrity Project (EIP). https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/electoral-integrity