Number of people living in autocracies and democracies by Ansgar Wolsing

This project illustrates the global evolution of political regimes between 1800 and 2021, classifying them into four groups: liberal democracies, electoral democracies, electoral autocracies and closed autocracies. The classification follows the criteria set out by Lührmann et al. (2018) and is informed by the assessments of experts from V-Dem.
The streamgraph shows the evolution over time. It visually captures shifts in the number of people living in each regime type, providing insight into the dynamic interplay between democratic and autocratic systems. The streamgraph allows for a clear depiction of the ebb and flow of these regime categories while maintaining a neutral presentation of historical trends.
The treemap shows the proportion of people living in each type of political regime in 2021, with the largest countries in terms of population also shown.
The charts were created as a contribution to the #30DayChartChallenge 2023 (Day 6, Data Day: Our World in Data).