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3 clusters · 35 sources · 4 days · First seen · Last updated

Global democratic trends and indices

Overview

Reports on global democratic trends present differing perspectives on the current state of international governance. An International IDEA report warns of a significant global retreat, noting that 2025 marked the 11th consecutive year of decline. This report specifically identifies the United States as a prominent accelerator of this trend, citing that nearly half of its democratic indicators have reached their lowest levels since 1975.

In contrast, the 2025 Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Democracy Index indicates a stabilization of global democracy levels following an eight-year decline. While the EIU report notes that the global average score rose slightly and nearly 75 percent of countries maintained or improved their scores, it also confirms a continued decline in the United States. The U.S. remains categorized as a ‘flawed democracy’ due to intense political polarization and deteriorating civil liberties.

By September 2026, International IDEA reported a historic decline in U.S. democracy, with the country showing negative results in more than half of 30 key metrics. This represents the worst performance since monitoring began in 1975. Specific areas of decline include judicial independence, access to justice, parliamentary effectiveness, freedom of the press, and freedom of expression.

The report notes that while some indicators began to drop during the Joe Biden administration, the second term of Donald Trump significantly accelerated the consolidation of presidential power, undermining the rule of law. International IDEA Secretary General Kevin Casas-Zamora stated that the situation in the U.S. has global implications, potentially weakening international cooperation and increasing the risk of conflict.

Entities

United States · International IDEA · Donald Trump · Kevin Casas-Zamora · Spain

Timeline

  1. 13 days ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    International IDEA reports historic decline in U.S. democracy

    International IDEA reports a historic decline in U.S. democracy, with key indicators like judicial independence and press freedom hitting their lowest levels since 1975, impacting global stability.

  2. 14 days ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 6 sources
    EIU Democracy Index shows global stabilization after eight-year decline

    The 2025 EIU Democracy Index shows global democracy levels stabilizing after eight years of decline, though the US remains a ‘flawed democracy’ and Bosnia and Herzegovina stays in the ‘hybrid regime’ category.

  3. 17 days ago

    [INTERNATIONAL] 27 sources
    United States democratic decline threatens global rule of law, report warns

    A report by International IDEA warns of a global democratic decline, noting that U.S. democratic indicators have hit 50-year lows, potentially emboldening authoritarianism and undermining the rule of law.

Sources

360radio.com.co · almomento.net · bosnainfo.ba · cnn.iprima.cz · elcorreoweb.es · eldiadecordoba.es · electronicsweekly.com · elespectador.com · elveedordigital.com · finde.latercera.com · french.almanar.com.lb · haitigazette.com · huelvainformacion.es · infokuryr.cz · kpbs.org · lacronicabadajoz.com · lasemainedansleboulonnais.fr · makpress.mk · motor24.pt · newsweek.ro · ocio.diariodemallorca.es · ocio.diarioinformacion.com · ocio.farodevigo.es · omahadailyrecord.com · oslobodjenje.ba · rama-prozor.info · sapo.pt · stirileprotv.ro · theguardian.com · vesti-online.com · web.eldia.es · world-today-journal.com · yenicaggazetesi.com.tr · zenit.ba · ziarulprofit.ro

This summary has been updated 1 time: see revision history