Do you know which countries are considered the most democratic?

The Most Democratic Countries In The World

 

 

 

The Economist Intelligence Unit conducts an annual analysis  reflecting the state of global democracy of 165 nations and two territories. The Democracy index includes 5 criteria : electoral process and pluralism; civil liberties; the functioning of government; political participation; and political culture. Also, each nation is categorized across gradient levels of regimes: full democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid regimes, and authoritarian regimes.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most democratic countries are found in Scandinavia, with Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Denmark occupying the first four spots on the list, and New Zealand rounding out the top five.

Overall, half of the world lives under a democracy of some form. However, only 15 percent of countries enjoy full democracy and nearly a third of the world's nations are ruled by authoritarian regimes. The reasons for such disappointing numbers vary between regions. The report writes that some countries in the West are struggling to maintain long-established democratic systems due to political infighting, declining participation, and the sacrifice of civil liberties in the name of national security.

So, where does the US place?  It ranks 21st on the list, behind such democratic bastions as Uruguay, Mauritius, and South Korea. The lowest scores Washington received were in the categories of  political participation and functioning of government.

For more information, see The Economist:  http://www.eiu.com/ ___________________________________________