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The Biggest Gains in Representative Democracy in 2024
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Key Takeaways
- Libya saw the greatest upgrade in its Democracy Index score as fighting between rival military factions declined.
- Meanwhile, Portugal upgraded from a “flawed democracy” to a “full democracy”, driven by fiscal discipline and a thriving tourism sector.
- Five of the top 10 biggest gains were seen in Europe, followed by four in Africa in 2024.
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For 83 countries around the world, democracy deteriorated in 2024.
This reflects a broader trend seen over the last decade amid growing disaffection with ruling parties and the gradual rise of authoritarianism. Still, some countries managed to see improvements last year, particularly in Africa and the Baltic states.
This graphic shows the countries with the biggest gains in representative democracy, based on data from the EIU’s Democracy Index 2024.
Where Did Representative Democracy Improve the Most?
Even though its overall score still remains low, Libya saw the highest upgrade in its Democracy Index score in 2024 as feuding between rival militias declined.
Since 2016, the number of Libyans in need of humanitarian assistance has dropped from 1.3 million to around 300,000. However, since the ouster of Moammar Qaddafi in 2011, the North-African country has remained unstable, operating under an authoritarian regime.
| Rank | Country | Annual Growth | Democracy Index Score 2024 (10 = top score) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Libya |
0.53 | 2.31 |
| 2 |  Senegal |
0.45 | 5.93 |
| 3 |  Portugal |
0.34 | 8.08 |
| 4 |  Latvia |
0.28 | 7.66 |
| 5 |  Lithuania |
0.28 | 7.59 |
| 6 |  North Macedonia |
0.25 | 6.28 |
| 7 |  DRC |
0.24 | 1.92 |
| 8 |  Jordan |
0.24 | 3.28 |
| 9 |  Chad |
0.22 | 1.89 |
| 10 |  Poland |
0.21 | 7.4 |
Meanwhile, three neighboring countries—Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland—all saw their scores increase moderately.
Latvia, which also shares a 176-mile border with Russia, saw its democratic score rise the among the highest across European nations.
Meanwhile, Portugal achieved “full democracy” status, rising from a “flawed democracy,” fueled by debt reduction, a fiscal surplus, and a booming tourism industry. Overall, Europe was home to five of the top 10 upgrades in democracy.
Looking beyond the continent, Jordan saw the greatest increase in the Middle East. Driving this score was the ability for opposition parties to campaign and compete in federal elections, although the degree of their actual political influence remains to be seen.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about this topic from a global perspective, check out this graphic on satisfaction with democracy by country in 2024.
The post Charted: The Biggest Gains in Democracy by Country in 2024 appeared first on Visual Capitalist.
