Democracy is a governing system under which citizens elect their representatives by casting vote; the elected representatives govern the country. In simple words, a country is called democratic when the government is elected by people there. Democracy is also defined as the "rule of the majority". In 2007, the United Nations declared September 15 as the International Day of Democracy. With a population of over 1.3 billion people, India is the most populous democracy in the world. The world's oldest democracy is the United States. However, the world's oldest and the world's largest are not among the "Fully Democratic Countries" list for 2018, compiled by UK-based company the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). International Day of Democracy 2019: Inspiring Quotes Reminding People What an 'Ideal Democracy' Shall Stand For.

World's Largest Democracies in Terms of Population:

  1. India: As mentioned above, India, the second largest country on the planet after China, is the largest democracy in the world. However, last year, India was ranked 41 in the EIU's democracy index and classed as a flawed democracy.
  2. United States: In terms of population, the United States of America is the world's second-largest country. Before the 2016 rankings, the US was rated as a full democracy. However, America has been placed in the section of flawed democracy post-2016.
  3. Indonesia: With a massive population of over 261 million, Indonesia is the third-largest democracy in terms of the size of the electorate. A "flawed democracy", Indonesia was ranked 65th in the democracy index.
  4. Brazil: With a population of over 208 million, Brazil is the world's fourth-largest democracy. Ranked 50th, Brazil is categorised as a "flawed democracy".
  5. Japan: With over 126 million people, Japan is the world’s tenth most populous country, as well as its fifth-largest democracy. Japan was ranked 22nd in the democracy index.

When we test the world's all democracies in five categories - electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, the functioning of government, political participation, and political culture - the entire rankings get changed. On the International Day of Democracy, we bring to you a list of top five democracies that really have democratic values. International Democracy Day 2019: Why is Democracy Celebrated? Know All About Significance, Theme And Democratic Values

World's Largest Democracies in Terms of Fair Governance:

  1. Norway: With a score of 10.00 in three of above-mentioned categories, Norway bagged the first position as "full democracy".
  2. Iceland: With an index score of 9.58, Iceland was ranked second in the section of "full democracy".
  3. Sweden: Ranked third with an overall score of 9.39, Sweden got full marks in the category of "political culture".
  4. New Zealand: With a score of 10.00 in categories of "electoral process and pluralism" and "civil liberties", New Zealand was ranked fourth. The country got 9.26 marks overall.
  5. Denmark: Ranked fifth, Denmark got an index score of 9.22.

On the International Day of Democracy, let us remind all democracies what it means to be a democratic country - democracy is the government of the people, by the people and for the people.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 15, 2019 10:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).