Seoul Gazette - US earns its lowest-ever score on freedom index

Washington-based Freedom House said that freedom eroded around the world in 2025 for the 20th straight year, in what it called a "grim milestone."

The United States remained rated free but fell to 81 points out of 100. It was the lowest score since the survey, which first covered 1972, began its 100-point system in 2002.

The score put the United States at the same level as South Africa and below a number of US European allies as well as South Korea and Panama.

Freedom House said the US decline was due to "both legislative dysfunction and executive dominance, growing pressure on people's ability to engage in free expression, and efforts by the new administration to undermine anticorruption safeguards."

Trump has aggressively asserted his power as president, ordering the closure of entire government agencies and deploying armed, masked anti-immigration agents around the country, with the White House promising them impunity.

The United States declined by three points, a drop only experienced by one other "free" country, Bulgaria, where 2024 elections were marred by allegations of fraud.

Overall, only 21 percent of people live in countries rated as "free," with much of the slip in Africa due to military coups, violence against protesters and the weakening of constitutional protections, Freedom House said.

Over the past two decades worldwide, "many more have fallen into the 'not free' category than have democratized or moved up to that free category," said Cathryn Grothe, a senior research analyst at Freedom House who co-authored the report.

"The world is getting less and less free and that middle area is shrinking, and then the free countries are staying relatively stable" despite the US score decline, she said.

On a positive note, three countries were upgraded to "free" from "partly free" -- Bolivia and Malawi, which both held competitive elections, and Fiji, which strengthened the rule of law.

The only country to receive a perfect 100 score was Finland, while only South Sudan was rated 0.

The biggest decline in score was in Guinea-Bissau, where the military last year seized power and suspended an election process days after voting.

Other countries with steep falls in scores included Tanzania, Burkina Faso and Madagascar, while Syria and Sri Lanka both saw gains.

Freedom House, founded in 1941 with bipartisan US support, is independently administered but historically has received US government funding, which was sharply reduced by Trump as he slashes efforts at democracy promotion.

A.Kim--SG