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The United States has been downgraded from a full to a flawed democracy, according to a new index released by the Economist Intelligence Unit in the United Kingdom. While the ranking coincides with the inauguration of President Donald Trump, the factors leading to the lower ranking predate his election.

(The Associated Press)

Americans like to think of our country as a bastion of democracy. But for the first time, The Democracy Index has downgraded the United States from a full to a flawed democracy, citing citizens' growing distrust of government, the media and elected officials.

The index, which was released Wednesday and is produced by the economic firm the Economist Intelligence Unit in the United Kingdom, ranks the United States alongside other flawed democracies, like Japan, Italy, India, Botswana and Ghana.

While the release of the index comes during the first week of the presidency of Donald Trump, the group stressed that the lower ranking for the U.S. was not prompted by the new administration. The lack of trust in the government and the political process is a long-term trend that predated the 2016 election, the report states, and Trump benefited from the trend.

The Economist Intelligence Unit began producing the Democracy Index in 2006. The index ranks countries on a scale from 1 to 10, based on 60 different indicators, including things like political participation, civil liberties and how well the government functions. Until now, the U.S. has been listed as a full democracy. But the country's score dropped to 7.98, below the 8.00 threshold for being ranked as a full democracy.

Of the 167 surveyed, only 19 ranked as a full democracy, with Norway coming out on top with a score of 9.93 points. There are 57 countries ranked as flawed, 51 authoritarian countries, and 40 countries with hybrid forms of government that are somewhere between democratic and authoritarian.

Which countries fared the worst? North Korea scored the lowest, at 1.09. Other countries at the bottom of the list include Syria, Chad, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Turkmenistan.

-- Grant Butler

503-221-8566; @grantbutler