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The Stockholm-based organization said its Global Report on the State of the Democracy, which measures democratic performance in 158 countries from 1975 till today, found that 47% of countries have experienced a decline in key democratic indicators over the past five years, marking the eighth consecutive year of global democratic backsliding. One in three elections are being disputed in some way and the average percentage of the voting age population who actually cast ballots has declined from 65.2% in 2008 to 55.5% in 2023.
Globally, in nearly 20% of elections between 2020 and 2024, one of the losing candidates or parties rejected the result, and elections were being decided by court appeals at the same rate. The report said 2023 was the worst year when it came to free and fair elections and parliamentary oversight.
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“Elections remain the single best opportunity to end democratic backsliding and turn the tide in democracy’s favor,” said International IDEA’s Secretary-General, Kevin Casas-Zamora. “The success of democracy depends on many things, but it becomes utterly impossible if elections fail.”
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