Following a peaceful revolution in 1990, Mongolia began holding multiparty elections and established itself as an electoral democracy. Political rights and civil liberties are generally respected. Political parties continue to rely on patronage networks rather than a competition of policy visions, and corruption is widespread.

• Parliamentary elections were held in June. An election-monitoring mission from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said the polls were well-run but noted that “the short official campaign favored the well-established parties with substantial resources,” and that social benefit increases before the polls benefited the ruling party. The Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) won the polls, but with a smaller majority compared to its performance in 2019. In July it formed a coalition with the Democratic Party (DP) and HUN Party. The elections were the first to be held under 2023 reforms that increased the size of the parliament from 76 to 126 members and introduced a mixed electoral system.
• In July, Unurtsetseg Naran, editor of the Zarig news site, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison following a closed-door trial, and an appeals court upheld the ruling in November. The case against her began in 2023, when she was investigated for “spreading false information” after criticizing the judicial system on social media; she was eventually arrested that December. The court found her guilty of spreading false information, tax evasion, money laundering, revealing personal secrets, and illegal acquisition of state secrets, all of which she denied. The case drew denunciations from local and international press freedom advocates.
• In September, police prevented several protesters from displaying a Ukrainian flag outside government buildings in Ulaanbaatar during a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin faced an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which accused him of responsibility for the illegal abduction of Ukrainian children, and the visit drew international headlines noting that Mongolian authorities hosted him even as Mongolia was a member nation of the ICC. Ahead of the visit, the court called on member states to meet their “obligation” to act upon ICC warrants.

This report has been abridged for Freedom in the World 2025 due to ongoing budget constraints. Freedom in the World is entirely funded by nongovernmental sources such as private foundations, corporations, and individuals like you. Please consider making a donation to support future editions of this vital resource.

For additional background information, see last year’s full report.