North Korea — Kim Jong Un administration (2011–present)
North Korea
Basis for the estimate: Hereditary totalitarian state, Juche, nuclear weapons.
Official system and how it worked in practice
| Official system | Self-described socialist state ruled by the Workers’ Party of Korea, with hereditary leadership |
|---|---|
| In practice | Closed autocracy no multiparty elections for the chief executive |
“In practice” is V-Dem’s Regimes of the World classification for North Korea, 2011–2025, from expert-coded data (V-Dem Regimes of the World (v2x_regime), V-Dem dataset v16, March 2026). V-Dem codes each country as it stood at the end of each year, so the first and last years can reflect the previous or next government. The official system is the constitutional form during the period.
Political placement
| Map dimension | Score (0–100) | Position | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market | 2 | strongly toward collective / planned | |
| Social Progressive ↔ Traditional | 80 | toward traditional | |
| Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian | 97 | strongly toward authoritarian | |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 100 | strongly toward nationalist | |
| Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 72 | toward intervention |
All nine underlying dimensions
| Dimension | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Economic ownership Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership | 1 | strongly toward collective ownership |
| Civil liberties Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions | 95 | strongly toward state restrictions |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 100 | strongly toward nationalist |
| Social and cultural values Progressive ↔ Traditionalist | 91 | strongly toward traditionalist |
| Political governance Democratic ↔ Autocratic | 100 | strongly toward autocratic |
| Equality and hierarchy Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical | 72 | toward hierarchical |
| Economic management Free market ↔ State planning | 98 | strongly toward state planning |
| Military intervention Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 72 | toward intervention |
| Religion and government Secular state ↔ Religious authority | 56 | near the center |
Country and government scores interpret the policies of a specific government or period; they are not an authoritative ranking of countries, and official constitutional structures can differ from how power is exercised in practice. How scores are made.
Key positions (estimated)
| Statement | Position | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Social media companies should be legally required to remove misinformation. | Strongly agrees | from their record |
| A national religious authority should have the power to veto legislation. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| A naturalized citizen can belong to the nation as fully as someone born there. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| A single ruling party can govern more effectively than a competitive multiparty system. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Paid sick leave and paid parental leave should be guaranteed by law. | Strongly agrees | from their record |
| Major industries should be publicly owned rather than privately controlled. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Traditional values should guide what society considers right and wrong. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Society works best when established social hierarchies are respected. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Foreign wars should be avoided unless national territory is directly threatened. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| Abortion should be illegal in most or all cases. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
Closest ideologies
Most similar governments
Sources
- Wikipedia: Kim Jong Un (Wikipedia search)
Last reviewed October 11, 2026.