Democracy in Latin America and the
July 11, 2022
Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices
Carla Y. Davis-Castro
This report provides a regional snapshot of the political climate in Latin America and the
Research Librarian
Caribbean, based on selected nongovernmental indices that measure democracy trends

worldwide. Using tables and graphs to illustrate regional trends, this report provides a
snapshot of democracy indicators from the following sources: (1) the U.S. Department

of State’s 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices; (2) Bertelsmann Stiftung’s
2022 Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI); (3) the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU’s) Democracy Index
2021; (4) Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2022; and (5) the Varieties of Democracy Institute’s (V-
DEM’s) Liberal Democracy Index in its Democracy Report 2022. Additional resources appear at the end of the
report.
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Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Democracy Indices and Source Notes ............................................................................................. 1
Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI) ................................................................................. 1
Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)’s Democracy Index ........................................................... 3
Freedom House’s Freedom in the World ................................................................................... 4
Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem)’s Liberal Democracy Index ................................... 6
Compilation of Democracy Indicators ............................................................................................ 9

Figures
Figure 1. BTI's 2022 Political Transformation Global Ranking of Latin American and
Caribbean Countries ..................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 2. EIU Democracy Index 2021 Global Ranking for Latin American and Caribbean
Countries ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Figure 3. Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2022 Aggregate Scores for Latin
American and Caribbean Countries ............................................................................................. 6
Figure 4. V-Dem Democracy Report 2022's Liberal Democracy Index Rank for Latin
American and Caribbean Countries ............................................................................................. 8

Tables
Table 1. Caribbean: 2021 Democracy Rankings ........................................................................... 10
Table 2. Mexico and Central America: 2021 Democracy Rankings ............................................. 13
Table 3. South America: 2021 Democracy Rankings .................................................................... 14
Table 4. Selected Resources for Democracy Indicators ................................................................ 17

Contacts
Author Information ........................................................................................................................ 19

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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Introduction
For decades, U.S. policy has broadly reflected the view that the spread of democracy around the
world is favorable to U.S. interests. The current trajectory of democracy around the world is an
issue of interest for Congress, which has generally supported U.S. democracy promotion efforts.
This report provides a regional snapshot of the political climate in Latin America and the
Caribbean, based on the U.S. Department of State’s description of each country’s political system
and selected nongovernmental (NGO) indices that measure democracy trends worldwide.
For additional information on democracy in the global context, see CRS Report R45344, Global
Trends in Democracy: Background, U.S. Policy, and Issues for Congress, by Michael A. Weber.
For related information about democracy in Latin American and the Caribbean, see the following
products:
ï‚· CRS Report R46781, Latin America and the Caribbean: U.S. Policy and Key
Issues in the 117th Congress, coordinated by Mark P. Sullivan;
ï‚· CRS In Focus IF10460, Latin America and the Caribbean: U.S. Policy Overview,
by Mark P. Sullivan;
ï‚· CRS Report R47028, U.S. Foreign Assistance to Latin America and the
Caribbean: FY2022 Appropriations, by Peter J. Meyer
ï‚· CRS In Focus IF12031, Anti-corruption Efforts in Latin America and the
Caribbean, by June S. Beittel and Rachel L. Martin
ï‚· CRS Report 98-684, Latin America and the Caribbean: Fact Sheet on Leaders
and Elections, by Carla Y. Davis-Castro; and
CRS also publishes reports on specific Latin American and Caribbean countries.
Democracy Indices and Source Notes
This report compiles information from the U.S. State Department and data from four
nongovernmental (NGO) indices, which are each discussed briefly below. CRS does not endorse
the methodology or accuracy of any particular democracy index. (For a discussion about
definitions of democracy and critiques of democracy indices, see CRS Report R45344, Global
Trends in Democracy: Background, U.S. Policy, and Issues for Congress, by Michael A. Weber.)
The following indices are discussed below: (1) Bertelsmann Stiftung’s 2022 Bertelsmann
Transformation Index (BTI); (2) the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU’s) Democracy Index
2020; (3) Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2021; and (4) the Varieties of Democracy
Institute’s (V-DEM’s) Liberal Democracy Index in its Democracy Report 2021.
Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI)
Bertelsmann Stiftung, a private foundation based in Germany, has published the Bertelsmann
Transformation Index (BTI) biannually since 2006. BTI 2022 includes global, regional and
country reports as well as three thematic reports that evaluate democracy, economy, and
governance in 137 developing and transition countries. For political transformation specifically,
BTI ranks countries using five criteria: (1) stateness, (2) political participation, (3) rule of law, (4)
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stability of democratic institutions, and (5) political and social integration.1 The political
transformation criteria also determine country classification: democracy in consolidation,
defective democracy, highly defective democracy, moderate autocracy, or hardline autocracy.2
BTI evaluates all Central and South American nations. Among Caribbean nations, BTI only
evaluates Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica. In its 2022
regional report, BTI finds that “the political turmoil observed in the majority of Latin American
countries is also reflected in the continuing decline in the quality of democracy.”3 The same
publication reports that “no further authoritarian regression was recorded for this edition...
however, there have been no transitions (back) to democracy during the BTI 2022 assessment
period.”4 In its global report, BTI highlights Brazil’s “steady decline in its quality of democracy”
over the past decade, Mexico’s “organized drug crime and the exceedingly brutal fight against
gang activities have undermined the quality of democracy,” and Central America’s “long-term
autocratization trends.”5 On the other hand, the report also highlights that some democracies
“have been consistently classified as consolidating and stable over the past 20 year in addition to
being able to maintain their high level of democracy despite myriad transformation challenges.”
This group, according to the report, includes Chile, Costa Rica and Uruguay in Latin America,
and Jamaica in the Caribbean.6
Figure 1 shows the global rank and classification of all Central and South American and
Caribbean countries according to the Political Transformation Rank, a component of the 2022
Bertelsmann Stiftung Transformation Index (BTI).

1 Bertelsmann Stiftung, “Methodology,” accessed May 10, 2022, available at https://www.bti-
project.org/en/methodology.html. Also see https://www.bti-project.org/en/index/political-transformation.html.
2 Bertelsmann Stiftung, “Methodology,” accessed May 10, 2022, at https://www.bti-project.org/en/methodology.html.
BTI uses seven threshold values to mark minimum requirements for a democracy: (1) free and fair elections, (2)
effective power to govern, (3) association/assembly rights, (4) freedom of expression, (5) separation of powers, (6) civil
rights, and (7) monopoly on the use of force and basic administration. BTI classifies a country as an autocracy if any
one of seven political transformation indicators falls short of the relevant threshold. BTI considers failing states
autocracies.
3 Peter Thiery, Paradigms Lost. New opportunities for transformation? — BTI Regional Report Latin America and the
Caribbean, Bertelsmann Stiftung 2022, p. 5.
4 Ibid.
5 Hauke Hartmann and Peter Thiery, Global findings BTI 2022, Bertelsmann Stiftung, pp. 5, 7-8.
6 Ibid., p. 7.
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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Figure 1. BTI's 2022 Political Transformation Global Ranking of
Latin American and Caribbean Countries

Source: Created by CRS using Bertelsmann Stiftung’s 2022 Transformation Index.
Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)’s Democracy Index
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), based in London and New York, has produced a
democracy index since 2006. The current report provides an annual snapshot of the state of
democracy for 165 independent states and two territories.7 The EIU classifies countries as full
democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid regimes, or authoritarian regimes based on an
aggregate score of 60 indicators in five categories: (1) electoral process and pluralism, (2) the
functioning of government, (3) political participation, (4) political culture, and (5) civil liberties.8
EIU evaluates all Central and South American nations. With respect to the Caribbean, EIU looks
at Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.
According to the EIU’s Democracy Index 2021, the Latin America and Caribbean region’s overall

7 The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) did not produce a democracy index report covering 2007 or 2009.
8 EIU, Democracy Index 2021: The China Challenge, 2022, at https://www.economistgroup.com/group-
news/economist-intelligence/democracy-index-2021-less-than-half-the-world-lives-in-a-democracy, pp. 67-68. EIU
defines terms as: full democracies are countries where the “functioning of government is satisfactory. Media are
independent and diverse.... effective checks and balances ... judiciary is independent and judicial decisions are enforced
... only limited problems.” Flawed democracies have “free and fair elections ... basic civil liberties are respected.
However, there are significant weaknesses in other aspects of democracy, including problems in governance, an
underdeveloped political culture and low levels of political participation.” Hybrid regimes have “substantial election
irregularities ... government pressure on opposition parties and candidates ... corruption tends to be widespread and the
rule of law is weak. Civil society is weak ... and the judiciary is not independent.” In authoritarian regimes, “state
political pluralism is absent or heavily circumscribed ... some formal institutions of democracy may exist, but these
have little substance ... elections ... are not free and fair.... disregard for abuses and infringements of civil liberties ...
repression of criticism of the government and pervasive censorship. There is no independent judiciary.”
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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

score declined from 6.09 in 2020 to 5.83 in 2021(on a 0 to 10 scale), a downturn EIU described as
“the biggest year-on-year decline experienced by any region since the start of the Democracy
Index in 2006.”9 The report notes five downgrades: Chile now a “flawed democracy,” Ecuador,
Mexico and Paraguay now “hybrid regimes,” and Haiti now an “authoritarian regime.”10 The two
countries in the region classified in 2021 as full democracies are Costa Rica and Uruguay, while
four countries in the region were identified as authoritarian regimes: Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and
Venezuela.11
Figure 2 shows the global rank and classification of Central and South American and Caribbean
countries according to the EIU’s Democracy Index 2021.
Figure 2. EIU Democracy Index 2021 Global Ranking for
Latin American and Caribbean Countries

Source: Created by CRS using EIU’s Democracy Index 2021.
Freedom House’s Freedom in the World
Freedom House is a U.S.-based NGO that conducts research on democracy, political freedom,
and human rights worldwide. It has published a global report on political rights and civil liberties,
now called Freedom in the World, annually since 1972.12 The 2021 report covers 195 countries
and 15 territories. Freedom House assigns each country 0 to 4 points on 25 different indicators—

9 EIU, Democracy Index 2021: The China Challenge, 2021, at https://www.economistgroup.com/group-
news/economist-intelligence/democracy-index-2021-less-than-half-the-world-lives-in-a-democracy, p. 47 and 9.
10 Ibid., p. 48.
11 Ibid.
12 Until 1978, the annual report was titled The Comparative Study of Freedom.
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10 indicators for political rights and 15 indicators for civil liberties—for a total of up to 100
points. The calculation equally weights a country’s aggregate political rights and civil liberties
scores then determines whether it has an overall status of free, partly free, or not free.13 Freedom
House evaluates all Central and South American and Caribbean nations. Freedom House’s report
covering 2021 found that the top countries with one-year democratic declines included El
Salvador, Haiti, and Nicaragua and the top countries with largest democratic declines over the last
decade included El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.14 Honduras was among the top
countries with a one-year democratic gain and both Ecuador and Peru earned a status change
from “partly free” to “free.”15 Meanwhile, Haiti’s status was downgraded from “partly free” to
“not free.”16 The report’s analysis is based on data that are detailed in full on the Freedom
House’s report web page.17 Freedom House’s webpage “Countries,” lists the current freedom
scores of all countries with a detailed profile for each.18
Figure 3 shows the aggregate scores of all Central and South American and Caribbean countries
according to the relevant Freedom House country web pages for Freedom in the World 2022.

13 The methodology is derived from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “The political rights questions are
grouped into three subcategories: Electoral Process (3 questions), Political Pluralism and Participation (4), and
Functioning of Government (3). The civil liberties questions are grouped into four subcategories: Freedom of
Expression and Belief (4 questions), Associational and Organizational Rights (3), Rule of Law (4), and Personal
Autonomy and Individual Rights (4).” The methodology questions and table for calculating country status are listed
online at Freedom House, “Freedom in the World Research Methodology,” accessed May 12, 2022, at
https://freedomhouse.org/reports/freedom-world/freedom-world-research-methodology.
14 Sarah Repucci and Amy Slipowitz, Freedom in the World 2022: The Global Expansion of Authoritarian Rule,
Freedom House, 2022, at https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/2022-
02/FIW_2022_PDF_Booklet_Digital_Final_Web.pdf, pp. 15-16.
15 Ibid., p. 15 and 26.
16 Ibid., p. 26.
17 Freedom House, “Freedom in the World: About the report,” accessed May 12, 2022, at
https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world.
18 Freedom House, “Countries and Territories,” accessed May 12, 2022, at https://freedomhouse.org/countries/freedom-
world/scores.
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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Figure 3. Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2022 Aggregate Scores for
Latin American and Caribbean Countries

Source: Created by CRS using Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2022.
Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem)’s Liberal Democracy
Index
The Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem), headquartered at the University of Gothenburg in
Sweden, collects democracy data through its research team in collaboration with country experts.
In 2017, V-Dem published its first global report measuring the status of democracy. V-Dem’s
Democracy Report 2022’s Liberal Democracy Index is based on 71 indicators that capture liberal
and electoral aspects of democracy.19 V-Dem evaluates all Central and South American nations.

19 Vanessa A. Boese, Nazifa Alizada, Martin Lundstedt, Kelly Morrison, Natalia Natsika, Yuko Sato, Hugo Tai, and
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V-Dem evaluates a subset of Caribbean nations, namely Barbados, Cuba, the Dominican
Republic, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. The V-Dem 2021 report
grouped 179 countries into four categories: liberal democracy, electoral democracy, electoral
autocracy, and closed autocracy.20 The report notes that in Latin America and the Caribbean,
“democratizing countries made the greatest strides in improving judicial constraints. In
Dominican Republic and Ecuador, for instance, there was significant and substantial
improvement in government compliance with the high court over the last ten years.”21 However,
with respect to democratization, “major regressions have struck twice as many countries: Brazil,
El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.”22 In the Western Hemisphere, Bolivia was upgraded to
an “electoral democracy” while Trinidad and Tobago was downgraded to an “electoral
democracy” and El Salvador to an “electoral autocracy.”23
Figure 4 shows the liberal democracy index rank and classification of all Central and South
American and Caribbean countries according to the Varieties of Democracy Institute's Democracy
Report 2022.

Staffan I. Lindberg, Autocratization Changing Nature? Democracy Report 2022, March 2022, Varieties of Democracy
Institute, p. 50. Hereinafter, V-Dem, Democracy Report 2022.
20 Using its data, V-Dem sorts countries into regime types based on Anna Lührmann, Marcus Tannenberg, and Staffan
I. Lindberg, “Regimes of the World (RoW): Opening New Avenues for the Comparative Study of Political Regimes,”
Politics & Governance, vol. 6, no. 1 (2018), pp. 60-77. This article states “that Dahl’s theory of polyarchy (1971, 1998)
provides the most comprehensive and most widely accepted theory of what distinguishes a democracy based on six …
institutional guarantees (elected officials, free and fair elections, freedom of expression, alternative sources of
information, associational autonomy, and inclusive citizenship).” The article defines democracies as having “de-facto
multiparty, free and fair elections, and Dahl’s institutional prerequisites minimally fulfilled.” An electoral democracy is
one in which “the rule of law or liberal principles [are] not satisfied” and a liberal democracy is one in which “the rule
of law and liberal principles [are] satisfied.” Autocracies have “no de facto multiparty, or free and fair elections, or
Dahl’s institutional prerequisites not minimally fulfilled.” An electoral autocracy has “de jure multiparty elections for
the chief executive and the legislature” and a closed autocracy has “no multiparty elections for the chief executive or
the legislature.”
21 V-Dem, Democracy Report 2022, p. 20.
22 V-Dem, Democracy Report 2022, p. 19.
23 Ibid., pp. 14-15.
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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Figure 4. V-Dem Democracy Report 2022's Liberal Democracy Index Rank
for Latin American and Caribbean Countries

Source: Created by CRS using the Varieties of Democracy Institute’s Democracy Report 2022.


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Compilation of Democracy Indicators
In the tables below, the country name is followed by parentheses with the nature of the country’s
political system, as described in the U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Reports on Human
Rights Practices.24 This U.S. government information is included here for comparison with
findings from the democracy indicators published by NGOs.
Table 1 looks at Caribbean countries’ global democracy rankings according to Bertelsmann
Stiftung’s 2022 Transformation Index, EIU’s Democracy Index 2021, Freedom House’s Freedom
in the World 2022, and V-Dem’s Democracy Report 2022. Table 2 compares the same reports for
Mexico and Central America, as does Table 3 for South America.
Each index is based on a unique methodology and the rankings are not necessarily comparable.
For more details on the methodologies, see “Democracy Indices and Source Notes” above. For
term definitions of each index, see footnote 2 for BTI, footnote 8 for EIU, footnote 13 for
Freedom House, and footnote 20 for V-Dem or consult the full reports. Each report evaluates a
different number of countries, so there are missing rankings for some countries. Countries are
listed alphabetically in each table.


24 U.S. Department of State, 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, April 12, 2022, at
https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/.
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Table 1. Caribbean: 2021 Democracy Rankings
Bertelsmann Stiftung
Transformation Index
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Political
Country
Transfor-
(U.S. State
mation
Liberal
Dept. political
Global
Global
Political
Civil
Democracy
system
Rank (of
Ranka
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Index Global
Regime
description)
137)
Status
(of 167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
Rank (of 179)
Typeb
Antigua &
Barbuda
(multiparty
—
—
—
—
85
33
52
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy)
Bahamas
(constitutional
—
—
—
—
91
38
53
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy)
Barbados
(multiparty
(-) Liberal
—
—
—
—
95
38
57
Free
35
parliamentary
democracy
democracy)
Belize
(constitutional
—
—
—
—
87
34
53
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy)
Cuba
Hard-line
Closed
(authoritarian
111
142
Authoritarian
12
1
11
Not free
159
autocracy
autocracy
state)
Dominica
(multiparty
—
—
—
—
93
37
56
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy)
CRS-10

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Bertelsmann Stiftung
Transformation Index
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Political
Country
Transfor-
(U.S. State
mation
Liberal
Dept. political
Global
Global
Political
Civil
Democracy
system
Rank (of
Ranka
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Index Global
Regime
description)
137)
Status
(of 167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
Rank (of 179)
Typeb
Dominican
Republic
Defective
Flawed
Electoral
(representative
35
60
68
27
41
Partly free
68
democracy
democracy
democracy
constitutional
democracy)
Grenada
(parliamentary
—
—
—
—
89
37
52
Free
—
—
democracy)
Guyana
(-)
Flawed
(multiparty
—
—
65
73
30
43
Free
90
Electoral
democracy
democracy)
democracy
Haiti
(multiparty
Hard-line
Electoral
96
119=
Authoritarian
33
11
22
Not free
121
constitutional
autocracy
autocracy
republic)
Jamaica
(constitutional
Democracy in
Flawed
Electoral
16
42
80
34
46
Free
33
parliamentary
consolidation
democracy
democracy
democracy)
St. Kitts and
Nevis
(multiparty
—
—
—
—
89
35
54
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy and
federation)
CRS-11

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Bertelsmann Stiftung
Transformation Index
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Political
Country
Transfor-
(U.S. State
mation
Liberal
Dept. political
Global
Global
Political
Civil
Democracy
system
Rank (of
Ranka
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Index Global
Regime
description)
137)
Status
(of 167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
Rank (of 179)
Typeb
St. Lucia
(multiparty
—
—
—
—
92
38
54
Free
—
—
parliamentary
democracy)
St. Vincent
and the
Grenadines
—
—
—
—
91
36
55
Free
—
—
(multiparty
parliamentary
democracy)
Suriname
Flawed
Electoral
(constitutional
—
—
49
79
34
45
Free
43
democracy
democracy
democracy)
Trinidad &
(+)
Tobago
Democracy in
Flawed
13
41
82
33
49
Free
39
Electoral
(parliamentary
consolidation
democracy
democracy
democracy)
Source: Compiled by CRS using the U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Bertelsmann Stiftung’s 2022 Transformation Index, EIU’s
Democracy Index 2021, Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2022, and the Varieties of Democracy Institute’s Democracy Report 2022.
Notes: Although Belize is located in Central America and Guyana and Suriname are located in South America, all three are members of the Caribbean Community
(CARICOM).
a. EIU’s symbol “=” indicates a tying score or equal rank with another country.
b. V-Dem’s symbol (-) indicates that, taking uncertainty into account, the country could belong to the lower category while (+) signifies that the country could belong
to the higher category.
CRS-12

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Table 2. Mexico and Central America: 2021 Democracy Rankings
Bertelsmann Stiftung
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy

Transformation Index 2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
Report 2022
Country
Political
Liberal
(U.S. State
Transfor-
Democracy
Dept. political
mation
Global
Political
Civil
Index
system
Global Rank
Ranka
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Global Rank
Regime
description)
(of 137)
Status
(of 167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
(of 179)
Type
Costa Rica
(constitutional
Democracy in
Full
Liberal
7
20=
91
38
53
Free
4
republic)
consolidation
democracy
democracy
El Salvador
(+)
(multiparty
Defective
Hybrid
40
79=
59
26
33
Partly Free
119
constitutional
democracy
regime
Electoral
republic)
autocracy
Guatemala
(-)
(multiparty
Moderate
Hybrid
91
99
51
21
30
Partly free
98
Electoral
constitutional
autocracy
regime
democracy
republic)
Honduras
(multiparty
Moderate
Hybrid
Electoral
82
92=
47
21
26
Partly free
116
constitutional
autocracy
regime
autocracy
republic)
Mexico
(multiparty
Highly defective
Hybrid
Electoral
57
86=
60
27
33
Partly free
87
federal
democracy
regime
democracy
republic)
Nicaraguab
(-)
(authoritarian
Hard-line
political
105
140
Authoritarian
23
5
18
Not free
167
Electoral
autocracy
system)
autocracy
CRS-13

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Bertelsmann Stiftung
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy

Transformation Index 2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
Report 2022
Country
Political
Liberal
(U.S. State
Transfor-
Democracy
Dept. political
mation
Global
Political
Civil
Index
system
Global Rank
Ranka
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Global Rank
Regime
description)
(of 137)
Status
(of 167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
(of 179)
Type
Panama
(multiparty
Defective
Flawed
Electoral
36
48
83
35
48
Free
53
constitutional
democracy
democracy
democracy
democracy)
Sources: Compiled by CRS using the U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Bertelsmann Stiftung’s 2022 Transformation Index, EIU’s
Democracy Index 2021, Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2022, and the Varieties of Democracy Institute’s (V-Dem) Democracy Report 2022.
Notes: Although Belize is located in Central America, it is a member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and is listed in Table 1.
a. EIU’s symbol “=” indicates a tying score or equal rank with another country.
b. “Constitutional multiparty republic” is the political system description from the U.S. State Department’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Nicaragua,
while the 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Nicaragua states: “Nicaragua has a highly centralized, authoritarian political system dominated by President
Daniel Ortega Saavedra and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo Zambrana. Ortega’s Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) party exercises total control
over the executive, legislative, judicial, and electoral functions.”
Table 3. South America: 2021 Democracy Rankings
Bertelsmann Stiftung
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

Transformation Index 2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Country
Political
Liberal
(U.S. State
Transfor-
Democracy
Dept. political
mation
Global
Political
Civil
Index Global
system
Global Rank
Status
Rank (of
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Rank (of
Regime
description)
(of 137)
Index
167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
179)
Typea
Argentina
(federal
Democracy in
Flawed
Electoral
19
50
84
35
49
Free
38
constitutional
consolidation
democracy
democracy
republic)
CRS-14

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link to page 19
Bertelsmann Stiftung
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

Transformation Index 2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Country
Political
Liberal
(U.S. State
Transfor-
Democracy
Dept. political
mation
Global
Political
Civil
Index Global
system
Global Rank
Status
Rank (of
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Rank (of
Regime
description)
(of 137)
Index
167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
179)
Typea
Bolivia
(-)
(multiparty
Defective
Hybrid
29
98
66
27
39
Partly free
89
Electoral
constitutional
democracy
regime
democracy
republic)
Brazil
(multiparty
Defective
Flawed
Electoral
29
47
73
31
42
Free
59
constitutional
democracy
democracy
democracy
republic)
Chile
(multiparty
Democracy in
Flawed
(-) Liberal
6
25
94
38
56
Free
21
constitutional
consolidation
democracy
democracy
democracy)
Colombia
(multiparty
Defective
Flawed
Electoral
47
59
64
29
35
Partly free
69
constitutional
democracy
democracy
democracy
republic)
Ecuador
(multiparty
Defective
Hybrid
Electoral
32
81=
71
31
40
Free
70
constitutional
democracy
regime
democracy
republic)
Paraguay
(-)
(multiparty
Defective
Hybrid
42
77
65
28
37
Partly free
77
Electoral
constitutional
democracy
regime
democracy
republic)
Peru
(multiparty
Defective
Flawed
Electoral
45
71
72
30
42
Free
40
constitutional
democracy
democracy
democracy
republic)
CRS-15

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link to page 19 link to page 19 link to page 13
Bertelsmann Stiftung
EIU Democracy Index
Freedom House
V-Dem Democracy Report

Transformation Index 2022
2021
Freedom in the World 2022
2022
Country
Political
Liberal
(U.S. State
Transfor-
Democracy
Dept. political
mation
Global
Political
Civil
Index Global
system
Global Rank
Status
Rank (of
Regime
Aggregate
Rights
Liberties
Freedom
Rank (of
Regime
description)
(of 137)
Index
167)
Type
Score
Score
Score
Status
179)
Typea
Uruguay
Democracy in
Full
(-) Liberal
(constitutional
1
13
97
40
57
Free
23
consolidation
democracy
democracy
republic)
Venezuelab
(multiparty
Hard-line
Electoral
119
151
Authoritarian
14
1
13
Not free
161
constitutional
autocracy
autocracy
republic)
Source: Compiled by CRS using the U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Bertelsmann Stiftung’s 2022 Transformation Index, EIU’s
Democracy Index 2021, Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2022, and the Varieties of Democracy Institute’s Democracy Report 2022.
Notes: Although Guyana and Suriname are located in South America, both are members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and are listed in Table 1.
a. V-Dem’s symbol (-) indicates that, taking uncertainty into account, the country could belong to the lower category while (+) signifies that the country could belong
to the higher category.
b. From U.S. State Department’s 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Venezuela: “While Venezuela is legally a multiparty, constitutional republic, the
illegitimate authoritarian regime led by Nicolas Maduro usurped control over all branches of government: executive, judicial, legislative, the offices of the prosecutor
general and ombudsman, and the electoral institutions. In December 2020 the Maduro regime organized parliamentary elections that were rigged in favor of the
regime, and approximately 60 countries and international bodies publicly declared the elections were neither free nor fair.”

CRS-16

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link to page 20 Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Table 4 provides resources for further information about democracy indicators in Central and
South America and the Caribbean, although many cover other geographic areas as well. The
sources are organized alphabetically by title. This is not an exhaustive list.
Table 4. Selected Resources for Democracy Indicators
Title (year published)
Organization
Resource Type
URL
Bertelsmann Stiftung's
Bertelsmann Stiftung
Political Transformation
https://www.bti-
2022 Transformation
Index ranks 137 countries project.org/en/index/
Index
political-
transformation.html

Bertelsmann Stiftung
Governance Index ranks
https://www.bti-
137 countries
project.org/en/index/
governance.html

Bertelsmann Stiftung
Regional report on 22
https://www.bti-
Latin American and the
project.org/content/en/
Caribbean countries
reports/regional-reports/
regional_report_LAC_20
20_EN.pdf

Bertelsmann Stiftung
Global report covers 137
https://www.bti-
countries
project.org/content/en/
reports/global-report-d/
global_findings_democrac
y_2020_EN.pdf
Country Reports on Human
U.S. State Department
Global report covers all
https://www.state.gov/rep
Rights Practices 2021
countries receiving U.S.
orts/2021-country-
assistance and all United
reports-on-human-rights-
Nations member states
practices/
Democracy Index 2020
Economist Intelligence
Global report covers 167
https://www.eiu.com/n/ca
Unit
countries and territories
mpaigns/democracy-
index-2020/
Democracy Report 2022
Varieties of Democracy
Global report covers 179

(V-Dem)
countries
Electoral Integrity
Electoral Integrity Project, Report and data from
https://www.electoralinteg
Worldwide 2019
an independent academic
cumulative study covering
rityproject.com/the-year-
project based at Harvard
national presidential and
in-elections-2019
University and the
parliamentary elections
University of Sydney
from July 1, 2012 to
December 31, 2018
Freedom in the World 2021 Freedom House
Global report covers 210
https://freedomhouse.org/
countries and territories
sites/default/files/2021-
02/FIW2021_World_022
52021_FINAL-web-
upload.pdf

Freedom House
Map
https://freedomhouse.org/
explore-the-
map?type=fiw&year=2021

Freedom House
Country ranking list
https://freedomhouse.org/
countries/freedom-world/
scores
Congressional Research Service

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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices

Title (year published)
Organization
Resource Type
URL
Global State of
International Institute for
Interactive map looks at

Democracy Indices 2019
Democracy and Electoral
116 indicators for 165
website
Assistance’s (International
countries from 1975-2020
IDEA) Global State of
Democracy Initiative
Global State of Democracy
International Institute for
Global report looks at

2021 report
Democracy and Electoral
trends in democracy from
Assistance
1975-2020 across 165
countries
The State of Democracy in
International Institute for
Regional report that

the Americas 2021 report
Democracy and Electoral
includes all Latin
Assistance
American countries and
some Caribbean countries
Rule of Law Index 2021
World Justice Project
Report measures how the
report
rule of law is experienced
and perceived in 139
countries and jurisdictions
Rule of Law Index 2021
World Justice Project
Interactive map and data

interactive website
tables cover 139
countries and jurisdictions
The Rule of Law in Belize
World Justice Project
Country report based on

(2022)
key findings from the
General Population Poll
2021
The Rule of Law in El
World Justice Project
Country report based on

Salvador (2022)
key findings from the
General Population Poll
2021
The Rule of Law in
World Justice Project
Country report based on

Guatemala (2022)
key findings from the
General Population Poll
2021
The Rule of Law in
World Justice Project
Country report based on

Honduras (2022)
key findings from the
General Population Poll
2021
Mexico States Rule of Law
World Justice Project
Country report on the

Index 2020-2021
adherence to the rule of
law in Mexico's 32 states
(also available in Spanish)
The Rule of Law in Panama
World Justice Project
Country report based on

(2022)
key findings from the
General Population Poll
2021
Worldwide Governance
World Bank
Data on 6 aggregate

Indicators
indicators of governance
for 214 countries from
1996-2020; in particular,
see Voice and
Accountability indicator
Source: Compiled by CRS.
Congressional Research Service

18

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Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Compilation of Selected Indices


Author Information

Carla Y. Davis-Castro

Research Librarian




Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan
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Congressional Research Service
R46016 · VERSION 7 · UPDATED
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