Statizoid

Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa

South Africa: Chief executive of the government is elected was 1 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
1
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 198 countries
All-time high
1
in 1910
All-time low
0
in 1900
Years of data
126
1900–2025

Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa, 1900–2025

00.20.40.60.81190019622025

Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

South Africa recorded 1 for chief executive of the government is elected in 2025. That is the highest value across all 126 years on record.

The figure is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa peaked at 1 in 1910 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1900.

That places South Africa 1st out of 198 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.

Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa, year by year

Year Value Change
1900 0 —
1901 0 —
1902 0 —
1903 0 —
1904 0 —
1905 0 —
1906 0 —
1907 0 —
1908 0 —
1909 0 —
1910 1 —
1911 1 +0.0%
1912 1 +0.0%
1913 1 +0.0%
1914 1 +0.0%
1915 1 +0.0%
1916 1 +0.0%
1917 1 +0.0%
1918 1 +0.0%
1919 1 +0.0%
1920 1 +0.0%
1921 1 +0.0%
1922 1 +0.0%
1923 1 +0.0%
1924 1 +0.0%
1925 1 +0.0%
1926 1 +0.0%
1927 1 +0.0%
1928 1 +0.0%
1929 1 +0.0%
1930 1 +0.0%
1931 1 +0.0%
1932 1 +0.0%
1933 1 +0.0%
1934 1 +0.0%
1935 1 +0.0%
1936 1 +0.0%
1937 1 +0.0%
1938 1 +0.0%
1939 1 +0.0%
1940 1 +0.0%
1941 1 +0.0%
1942 1 +0.0%
1943 1 +0.0%
1944 1 +0.0%
1945 1 +0.0%
1946 1 +0.0%
1947 1 +0.0%
1948 1 +0.0%
1949 1 +0.0%
1950 1 +0.0%
1951 1 +0.0%
1952 1 +0.0%
1953 1 +0.0%
1954 1 +0.0%
1955 1 +0.0%
1956 1 +0.0%
1957 1 +0.0%
1958 1 +0.0%
1959 1 +0.0%
1960 1 +0.0%
1961 1 +0.0%
1962 1 +0.0%
1963 1 +0.0%
1964 1 +0.0%
1965 1 +0.0%
1966 1 +0.0%
1967 1 +0.0%
1968 1 +0.0%
1969 1 +0.0%
1970 1 +0.0%
1971 1 +0.0%
1972 1 +0.0%
1973 1 +0.0%
1974 1 +0.0%
1975 1 +0.0%
1976 1 +0.0%
1977 1 +0.0%
1978 1 +0.0%
1979 1 +0.0%
1980 1 +0.0%
1981 1 +0.0%
1982 1 +0.0%
1983 1 +0.0%
1984 1 +0.0%
1985 1 +0.0%
1986 1 +0.0%
1987 1 +0.0%
1988 1 +0.0%
1989 1 +0.0%
1990 1 +0.0%
1991 1 +0.0%
1992 1 +0.0%
1993 1 +0.0%
1994 1 +0.0%
1995 1 +0.0%
1996 1 +0.0%
1997 1 +0.0%
1998 1 +0.0%
1999 1 +0.0%
2000 1 +0.0%
2001 1 +0.0%
2002 1 +0.0%
2003 1 +0.0%
2004 1 +0.0%
2005 1 +0.0%
2006 1 +0.0%
2007 1 +0.0%
2008 1 +0.0%
2009 1 +0.0%
2010 1 +0.0%
2011 1 +0.0%
2012 1 +0.0%
2013 1 +0.0%
2014 1 +0.0%
2015 1 +0.0%
2016 1 +0.0%
2017 1 +0.0%
2018 1 +0.0%
2019 1 +0.0%
2020 1 +0.0%
2021 1 +0.0%
2022 1 +0.0%
2023 1 +0.0%
2024 1 +0.0%
2025 1 +0.0%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 1 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • South Africa's 1 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0 0 0 10
1910s 1 1 1 10
1920s 1 1 1 10
1930s 1 1 1 10
1940s 1 1 1 10
1950s 1 1 1 10
1960s 1 1 1 10
1970s 1 1 1 10
1980s 1 1 1 10
1990s 1 1 1 10
2000s 1 1 1 10
2010s 1 1 1 10
2020s 1 1 1 6

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 1 Albania 1 compare
  2. 1 Algeria 1 compare
  3. 1 Andorra 1 compare
  4. 1 Angola 1 compare
  5. 1 Antigua and Barbuda 1 compare
  6. 1 Argentina 1 compare
  7. 1 Armenia 1 compare
  8. 1 Australia 1 compare
  9. 1 Austria 1 compare
  10. 1 Azerbaijan 1 compare
  11. 1 Bahamas 1 compare
  12. 1 Barbados 1 compare
  13. 1 Belarus 1 compare
  14. 1 Belgium 1 compare
  15. 1 Belize 1 compare
  16. 1 Benin 1 compare
  17. 1 Bhutan 1 compare
  18. 1 Bolivia 1 compare
  19. 1 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 compare
  20. 1 Botswana 1 compare
  21. 1 Brazil 1 compare
  22. 1 Bulgaria 1 compare
  23. 1 Burundi 1 compare
  24. 1 Cambodia 1 compare
  25. 1 Cameroon 1 compare
  26. 1 Canada 1 compare
  27. 1 Cape Verde 1 compare
  28. 1 Central African Republic 1 compare
  29. 1 Chad 1 compare
  30. 1 Chile 1 compare
  31. 1 Colombia 1 compare
  32. 1 Comoros 1 compare
  33. 1 Congo 1 compare
  34. 1 Costa Rica 1 compare
  35. 1 Cote d'Ivoire 1 compare
  36. 1 Croatia 1 compare
  37. 1 Cuba 1 compare
  38. 1 Cyprus 1 compare
  39. 1 Czechia 1 compare
  40. 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 1 compare
  41. 1 Denmark 1 compare
  42. 1 Djibouti 1 compare
  43. 1 Dominica 1 compare
  44. 1 Dominican Republic 1 compare
  45. 1 East Timor 1 compare
  46. 1 Ecuador 1 compare
  47. 1 Egypt 1 compare
  48. 1 El Salvador 1 compare
  49. 1 Equatorial Guinea 1 compare
  50. 1 Estonia 1 compare
  51. 1 Ethiopia 1 compare
  52. 1 Fiji 1 compare
  53. 1 Finland 1 compare
  54. 1 France 1 compare
  55. 1 Gabon 1 compare
  56. 1 Gambia 1 compare
  57. 1 Georgia 1 compare
  58. 1 Germany 1 compare
  59. 1 Ghana 1 compare
  60. 1 Greece 1 compare
  61. 1 Grenada 1 compare
  62. 1 Guatemala 1 compare
  63. 1 Guinea 1 compare
  64. 1 Guyana 1 compare
  65. 1 Honduras 1 compare
  66. 1 Hungary 1 compare
  67. 1 Iceland 1 compare
  68. 1 India 1 compare
  69. 1 Indonesia 1 compare
  70. 1 Iraq 1 compare
  71. 1 Ireland 1 compare
  72. 1 Israel 1 compare
  73. 1 Italy 1 compare
  74. 1 Jamaica 1 compare
  75. 1 Japan 1 compare
  76. 1 Kazakhstan 1 compare
  77. 1 Kenya 1 compare
  78. 1 Kiribati 1 compare
  79. 1 Kyrgyzstan 1 compare
  80. 1 Laos 1 compare
  81. 1 Latvia 1 compare
  82. 1 Lebanon 1 compare
  83. 1 Lesotho 1 compare
  84. 1 Liberia 1 compare
  85. 1 Lithuania 1 compare
  86. 1 Luxembourg 1 compare
  87. 1 Malawi 1 compare
  88. 1 Malaysia 1 compare
  89. 1 Maldives 1 compare
  90. 1 Malta 1 compare
  91. 1 Marshall Islands 1 compare
  92. 1 Mauritania 1 compare
  93. 1 Mauritius 1 compare
  94. 1 Mexico 1 compare
  95. 1 Micronesia (country) 1 compare
  96. 1 Moldova 1 compare
  97. 1 Mongolia 1 compare
  98. 1 Montenegro 1 compare
  99. 1 Mozambique 1 compare
  100. 1 Namibia 1 compare
  101. 1 Nauru 1 compare
  102. 1 Nepal 1 compare
  103. 1 Netherlands 1 compare
  104. 1 New Zealand 1 compare
  105. 1 Nicaragua 1 compare
  106. 1 Nigeria 1 compare
  107. 1 North Macedonia 1 compare
  108. 1 Norway 1 compare
  109. 1 Pakistan 1 compare
  110. 1 Palau 1 compare
  111. 1 Panama 1 compare
  112. 1 Papua New Guinea 1 compare
  113. 1 Paraguay 1 compare
  114. 1 Peru 1 compare
  115. 1 Philippines 1 compare
  116. 1 Poland 1 compare
  117. 1 Portugal 1 compare
  118. 1 Romania 1 compare
  119. 1 Russia 1 compare
  120. 1 Rwanda 1 compare
  121. 1 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1 compare
  122. 1 Saint Lucia 1 compare
  123. 1 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1 compare
  124. 1 Samoa 1 compare
  125. 1 San Marino 1 compare
  126. 1 Sao Tome and Principe 1 compare
  127. 1 Senegal 1 compare
  128. 1 Serbia 1 compare
  129. 1 Seychelles 1 compare
  130. 1 Sierra Leone 1 compare
  131. 1 Singapore 1 compare
  132. 1 Slovakia 1 compare
  133. 1 Slovenia 1 compare
  134. 1 Solomon Islands 1 compare
  135. 1 South Korea 1 compare
  136. 1 Spain 1 compare
  137. 1 Sri Lanka 1 compare
  138. 1 Suriname 1 compare
  139. 1 Sweden 1 compare
  140. 1 Switzerland 1 compare
  141. 1 Taiwan 1 compare
  142. 1 Tajikistan 1 compare
  143. 1 Tanzania 1 compare
  144. 1 Thailand 1 compare
  145. 1 Togo 1 compare
  146. 1 Tonga 1 compare
  147. 1 Trinidad and Tobago 1 compare
  148. 1 Tunisia 1 compare
  149. 1 Turkey 1 compare
  150. 1 Turkmenistan 1 compare
  151. 1 Tuvalu 1 compare
  152. 1 USSR 1 compare
  153. 1 Uganda 1 compare
  154. 1 Ukraine 1 compare
  155. 1 United Kingdom 1 compare
  156. 1 United States 1 compare
  157. 1 Uruguay 1 compare
  158. 1 Uzbekistan 1 compare
  159. 1 Vanuatu 1 compare
  160. 1 Venezuela 1 compare
  161. 1 Vietnam 1 compare
  162. 1 Western Sahara 1 compare
  163. 1 Zambia 1 compare
  164. 1 Zimbabwe 1 compare

See the full ranking of 198 places →

More public sector data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa?
Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa was 1 in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest chief executive of the government is elected recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 1 in 1910.
What is the lowest chief executive of the government is elected recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1900.
How does South Africa rank for chief executive of the government is elected?
South Africa ranks 1st out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
Is chief executive of the government is elected rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Chief executive of the government is elected. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/elections-for-the-governments-chief-executive/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/elections-for-the-governments-chief-executive/south-africa/">Chief executive of the government is elected in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Chief executive of the government is elected
Source
Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
198 places, 32,485 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

The variable indicates whether some citizens directly or indirectly elect the chief executive. It considers political system which do not govern themselves — such as due to external interventions, occupations, or colonization — as not holding executive elections.