Countries by Political Voice
Complete ranking of 32 countries • % who feel heard by government • Updated 2026
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About Political Voice Rankings
Switzerland leads all 32 countries in Political Voice with a value of 58.17% who feel heard by government, while Latvia ranks last at 12.1% who feel heard by government. This represents a 5-fold difference between the highest and lowest values.
What Political Voice Measures
Share of people who feel they have a say in what government does, from OECD How's Life / Well-Being.
Why This Ranking Matters
Examining Political Voice across all countries reveals patterns that might not be obvious at the national level. Regional clusters, outlier nations, and historical trajectories all become clearer when the full global picture is assembled in a single ranking.
Global Range
Values range from 12.1% who feel heard by government (Latvia) to 58.17% who feel heard by government (Switzerland) — a 5-fold difference across 32 countries.
Regional Patterns
European countries dominate this ranking, holding 13 of the top 20 positions. This strong regional concentration suggests shared economic, geographic, or policy factors that drive higher values across the continent.
Values are broadly distributed across countries, with the middle 50% ranging from 22.18% who feel heard by government to 38.65% who feel heard by government. The overall spread from 12.1% who feel heard by government to 58.17% who feel heard by government reflects significant global variation.
Notable Outliers
Switzerland holds a significant lead over Australia, with a 25% gap between first and second place. While several countries cluster near the top, the leader's margin is notable. The bottom five countries are all from Europe, pointing to regional challenges that affect political voice across the continent.
Continental Leaders
Highest Political Voice
The 5 strongest Political Voice reads.
Lowest Political Voice
The 5 lowest Political Voice reads.
Data Note
Rankings are based on the latest available data from OECD How's Life / Well-Being, covering 32 of 249 countries and territories. Countries without data for this metric are excluded from the ranking. All values represent the most recently reported figures.
Top 10 Countries
Country Ladder
| Percentile | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Switzerland | 58.17% who feel heard by government | Europe | 100% |
| 2nd | Australia | 46.46% who feel heard by government | Oceania | 97% |
| 3rd | Mexico | 45.46% who feel heard by government | North America | 94% |
| 4th | Denmark | 44.27% who feel heard by government | Europe | 91% |
| 5th | New Zealand | 43.6% who feel heard by government | Oceania | 88% |
| 6th | Canada | 40.26% who feel heard by government | North America | 84% |
| 7th | Netherlands | 39% who feel heard by government | Europe | 81% |
| 8th | South Korea | 38.65% who feel heard by government | Asia | 78% |
| 9th | Ireland | 36.35% who feel heard by government | Europe | 75% |
| 10th | Norway | 34.8% who feel heard by government | Europe | 72% |
| 11th | Spain | 30.98% who feel heard by government | Europe | 69% |
| 12th | Sweden | 29.92% who feel heard by government | Europe | 66% |
| 13th | Belgium | 29.47% who feel heard by government | Europe | 63% |
| 14th | Czechia | 28.96% who feel heard by government | Europe | 59% |
| 15th | Germany | 28.93% who feel heard by government | Europe | 56% |
| 16th | Luxembourg | 28.83% who feel heard by government | Europe | 53% |
| 17th | Japan | 28.56% who feel heard by government | Asia | 50% |
| 18th | France | 26.27% who feel heard by government | Europe | 47% |
| 19th | Colombia | 25.03% who feel heard by government | North America | 44% |
| 20th | Portugal | 24.05% who feel heard by government | Europe | 41% |
| 21st | Iceland | 22.69% who feel heard by government | Europe | 38% |
| 22nd | Italy | 22.34% who feel heard by government | Europe | 34% |
| 23rd | Chile | 22.31% who feel heard by government | South America | 31% |
| 24th | Costa Rica | 22.18% who feel heard by government | North America | 28% |
| 25th | Greece | 21.17% who feel heard by government | Europe | 25% |
| 26th | Finland | 20.86% who feel heard by government | Europe | 22% |
| 27th | Slovakia | 20.09% who feel heard by government | Europe | 19% |
| 28th | United Kingdom | 19.82% who feel heard by government | Europe | 16% |
| 29th | Austria | 18.09% who feel heard by government | Europe | 13% |
| 30th | Estonia | 17.24% who feel heard by government | Europe | 9% |
| 31st | Slovenia | 14.8% who feel heard by government | Europe | 6% |
| 32nd | Latvia | 12.1% who feel heard by government | Europe | 3% |