what countries have democracy today?

Answer 1

Many countries have democracy -- still more have the right to vote, but are not democracies.

According to modern terminology, a democratic state is one which is ruled by the people at large. A *direct* democracy, by the way, is a state which is ruled directly by the people through referendum, rather than through elected representatives (no such government currently exists for any country).

The problem is that political scientists disagree about what is required for the label "democracy". The right to vote for your elected representatives is the most obvious democratic feature, but there are others. Rule of law is crucial -- this is the concept that the government cannot simply ignore laws, precedents, or the constitution for its own convenience. A system of justice is crucial, as well. Other important parts of democracy involve regular elections, free and fair elections (candidates can run freely, and have access to media), and protections of freedoms of speech and assembly for the citizens and the media. A set of structures to balance power among competing interests is important (particularly in federal countries). The government must also be free to form policy without interference from other groups, such as an entrenched unelected bureaucracy, the military, and religious institutions. The voting booth, in other words, is important, but it is not the be-all and end-all, or else countries like Uzbekistan would be classed as democracies -- the have elections, it's just that the ruling party always wins by suspiciously large margins.

Saying which countries are more democratic is even more difficult. The US imagines itself as the foremost example of democracy, yet there is no guarantee that the popular vote will decide the presidency, thanks to the Electoral College. Does this make us less democratic than France? Some would say yes, others would disagree. That just illustrates the difficulty of picking criteria. Other political scientists include criteria like health, education, and income distribution as markers of democratic states.

A partial list of democracies would include:
the United States of America
Canada
Japan
the 27 states of the European Union
Switzerland
Israel
Brazil
India
South Africa

If you want a longer list, visit FreedomHouse.org, which is the most widely-cited institution for ranking the political and economic freedoms of the world's countries. Countries that score double 3 or better on both categories would be partial or full democracies.

Answer 2

There are 121 electoral democracies (keep in mind, there are many forms of democracy... I am assuming you mean similar to the USA)

Albania
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Andorra
Parliamentary democracy

Argentina
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (federal)

Armenia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Australia
Parliamentary democracy

Austria
Parliamentary democracy (federal)

Bahamas
Parliamentary democracy

Bangladesh
Parliamentary democracy

Barbados
Parliamentary democracy

Belgium
Parliamentary democracy(federal)

Belize
Parliamentary democracy

Benin
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Bolivia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Botswana
Parliamentary democracy and traditional chiefs

Brazil
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (federal)

Bulgaria
Parliamentary democracy

Canada
Parliamentary democracy (federal)

Cape Verde
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Chile
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Colombia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy(insurgencies)

Costa Rica
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Croatia
Parliamentary democracy

Cyprus
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Czech Republic
Parliamentary democracy

Denmark
Parliamentary democracy

Djibouti
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (dominant party)

Dominica
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Dominican Republic
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Ecuador
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

El Salvador
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Estonia
Parliamentary democracy

Fiji
Parliamentary democracy

Finland
Parliamentary democracy

France
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

The Gambia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Georgia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Germany
Parliamentary democracy

Ghana
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Greece
Parliamentary democracy

Grenada
Parliamentary Democracy

Guatemala
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Guinea-Bissau
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Guyana
Parliamentary democracy

Honduras
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Hungary
Parliamentary democracy

Iceland
Parliamentary democracy

India
Parliamentary democracy

Indonesia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (military-influenced)

Ireland
Parliamentary democracy

Israel
Parliamentary democracy

Italy
Parliamentary democracy

Jamaica
Parliamentary democracy

Japan
Parliamentary democracy

Kiribati
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Korea, South
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Latvia
Parliamentary democracy

Liechtenstein
Principality and parliamentary democracy

Lithuania
Parliamentary democracy

Luxembourg
Parliamentary democracy

Macedonia
Parliamentary democracy




Madagascar
Presidential democracy

Malawi
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Mali
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Malta
Parliamentary democracy

Marshall Islands
Parliamentary democracy and traditional chiefs

Mauritius
Parliamentary democracy

Mexico
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (federal)

Micronesia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Moldova
Parliamentary democracy

Monaco
Principality and parliamentary democracy

Mongolia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Mozambique
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Nambia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Nauru
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Nepal
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Netherlands
Parliamentary democracy

New Zealand
Parliamentary democracy

Nicaragua
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Niger
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Nigeria
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Norway
Parliamentary democracy

Palau
Presidential democracy and traditional chiefs

Panama
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Papua New Guinea
Parliamentary democracy

Paraguay
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Peru
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Philippines
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Poland
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Portugal
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Romania
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Russia
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

St. Kitts and Nevis
Parliamentary democracy

St. Lucia
Parliamentary democracy

St.Vincent and the Grenadines
Parliamentary democracy

Samoa
Parliamentary democracy and traditional chiefs

San Marino
Parliamentary democracy

Sao Tome and Principe
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Senegal
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Seychelles
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Sierra Leone
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Slovakia
Parliamentary democracy

Slovenia
Parliamentary democracy

Soloman Islands
Parliamentary democracy

South Africa
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Spain
Parliamentary democracy

Sri Lanka
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (insurgency)

Suriname
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Sweden
Parliamentar democracy

Switzerland
Parliamentary democracy (federal)

Taiwan
Presidential democracy

Thailand
Parliamentary democracy

Trinidad and Tobago
Parliamentary democracy

Turkey
Presidential-parliamentary democracy(military-influenced)

Tuvalu
Parliamentary democracy

Ukraine
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

United Kingdom
Parliamentary democracy

United States of America
Presidential-parliamentary democracy (federal)

Uruguay
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Vanuatu
Parliamentary

Venezuela
Presidential-parliamentary democracy

Yugoslavia
Parliamentary democracy