This article examines one of the most subtle yet profound transformations of contemporary Brazilian democracy: the gradual replacement of overt public deliberation by concealed forms of algorithmic governance, in which political microtargeting assumes a central role in electoral influence. This dynamic displaces the exercise of political freedom of expression from the shared public sphere into private and opaque circuits, where rational persuasion gives way to the calculated exploitation of behavioral predispositions and cognitive vulnerabilities. As a result, acute constitutional tensions emerge between freedom of expression, informational self-determination, and the very integrity of the democratic process, calling into question the normative foundations of the Democratic Rule of Law enshrined in the 1988 Federal Constitution. We argue that the preservation of Brazilian democracy requires the development of more robust legal instruments aimed at algorithmic accountability and the protection of the public sphere as a collective constitutional good. The research adopts a deductive methodological approach, grounded in an extensive review of both national and international scholarship, as well as a critical analysis of the Brazilian regulatory framework, with particular attention to the General Data Protection Law (Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados Pessoais) and electoral legislation. We find that the structural opacity of algorithmic systems employed in electoral campaigns significantly hinders social, administrative, and judicial oversight of these practices, thereby enabling sophisticated and diffuse forms of public opinion manipulation that frequently evade traditional mechanisms of legal accountability.

Abstract This article traces the history of the research hub Visible Justice, fore-grounding the necessity for transdisciplinary thinking and the need to seek alternative modes of address for transformative discourse in cultural spaces. Founded at University of the Arts London in 2018, and emerging from a global moment of political unrest and mass mobilization, the initiative is dedicated to exploring the intersections of visual culture, ethics, aesthetics, and social justice beyond the confines of traditional legal frameworks. Visible Justice fosters collaboration between artists, activists, scholars, and legal practitioners, channeling political voice through visual, sonic, and performative interventions. It seeks to reckon with the specters of slavery, empire, colonial rule, and totalitarian control—forces that have never been laid to rest and that continue to render lives unlivable and environments unbreathable today. Recent projects have examined the algorithmic mediation of justice, the rise of neocolonial “frontierism” in space exploration, and the entanglements of climate colonialism with indigenous and diasporic dispossession. Through a series of symposia, exhibitions, and performances, Visible Justice envisions transformative, collective futures grounded in environmental, racial, and social justice. Can working across traditional disciplinary lines with artists, activists, academics, lawyers, and arts institutions create collective routes to political freedom?

The article is devoted to defining the substance, approaches, and trends in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter – the ECtHR) in the field of social protection, as well as its influence on the formation of national policy and law enforcement practices in the member states of the Council of Europe. The meaning of the category “social,” which forms the basis for understanding social rights, is clarified. It is determined that social rights are second-generation rights that encompass healthcare, housing, social security, education, and an adequate standard of living. These rights regulate key social relations, constitute the foundation of human existence, and define the essence of the functioning of a social and rule-of-law state. It has been found that, although the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (hereinafter – the Convention) does not directly guarantee social rights, the practice of the ECtHR demonstrates the possibility of their protection through the interpretation of provisions on the right to life, property, non-discrimination, and effective legal remedies. Special attention is paid to the protection of property rights in the sphere of social benefits. It has been established that, according to the legal position of the ECtHR, social benefits can be regarded as «property» subject to protection. Key ECtHR decisions concerning social benefits, non-discrimination on the grounds of gender, age, social or national origin, and the practice of positive discrimination regarding pension and social benefits are presented. The article also separately examines ECtHR precedents regarding the application of Article 3 of the Convention in the context of ensuring an adequate level of medical care and decent conditions of detention as an aspect of social protection, as well as the interconnection of social rights with political freedoms and other human rights. It has been concluded that the ECtHR establishes pan-European standards for the realization of social rights, while allowing states a certain discretion in determining specific mechanisms of social policy, but at the same time monitors the impermissibility of arbitrary or discriminatory restrictions. In Ukraine, the implementation of ECtHR decisions through legislation and judicial practice contributes to harmonizing the national system with European standards and strengthening the effective protection of citizens’ social rights.

Purpose The aim of this study is to put forth a detailed picture of the poverty and freedom statuses of Turkish women living in Berlin within the context of Amartya Sen's capability approach. In this study, which acknowledges that characteristics such as gender, gender roles and place of residence may affect the relation between an individual's capacity and their poverty status, it is tried to determine the poverty and freedom conditions of Turkish women who immigrated to Germany alone or with their families due to certain reasons. Design/methodology/approach In this study, in which a qualitative research design was used, a semi-structured interview form was prepared. The data obtained from these forms were evaluated by using the descriptive analysis method and linking them with the literature. Findings The most general conclusion to be drawn from the findings of this study is that Turkish women living in Berlin benefit from the aforementioned instrumental freedoms and opportunities to a great extent and that they do not encounter major obstacles or hindrances in accessing instrumental freedoms and opportunities at the macro level. Originality/value In this study, women's poverty is addressed not only by analyses conducted solely on income and expenditure in a uni-dimensional manner but also by a framework of analyses that includes the deprivation of instrumental freedoms such as economic and social opportunities and political freedoms. In addition, by addressing the issue of women's poverty with a specific focus on Turkish women living in Berlin, this study offers a novel and valuable contribution to the relevant academic literature.

Friedrich A. Hayek is widely regarded as one of the most influential twentieth-century theorists of classical liberalism and constitutional governance. His work emphasizes individual liberty, decentralized decision-making, and the rule of law as essential institutional conditions of a free society. Hayek argued that economic freedom is inseparable from political freedom and warned that discretionary government intervention in markets undermines constitutional limits and expands the state's coercive authority. This article examines Hayek's conception of liberty, his critique of economic interventionism, and his theory of the rule of law as articulated in The Road to Serfdom and The Constitution of Liberty. Situating Hayek's arguments within the literature of constitutional political economy, the article engages major critiques from Keynesian economics, Karl Polanyi, John Gray, James Buchanan, and Amartya Sen. It further considers contemporary governance challenges, including digital markets and regulatory discretion, through Hayek's emphasis on general rules and institutional restraint. While critics contend that Hayek's framework limits the state's capacity to address collective problems, the analysis argues that his institutional approach offers a durable standard for evaluating constitutional limits, economic coordination, and the preservation of liberty in modern democratic societies.

ABSTRACT Scholarly approaches to understanding freedom in Milton's prose tend to connect Milton's ideas to either liberalism or republicanism. Neither of these approaches is sufficient because freedom, for Milton, was not a single concept. Milton explored political and religious freedom very differently. Rather than focus on an abstract definition of freedom, Milton's prose tracts address practical policies for bringing about the conditions necessary for freedom; in doing so, these works separate religious freedom from political freedom based on the role of state power. In religious freedom, the state could not interfere with a Christian's conscience, whereas in political freedom, coercion and authoritarianism were essential in Milton's prose. This difference between religious and political freedom is clearest in Milton's discussions of the army and Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Milton praised the army for both freely exploring new religious ideas in its search for truth and staging coups against regimes that reflected popular sovereignty. He also encouraged Cromwell to follow the example of the army in pursuing both religious and political freedom.

Purpose To achieve the sustainable development goals, women must have equitable leadership and involvement in politics and public life to promote inclusivity in problem-solving. Several studies have established the relationships between democracy, women's participation in democracy and gender equality. To capture an underexplored avenue, this study examined the causal relationships between political freedom and women's leadership and political participation. Design/methodology/approach In this quantitative study, we used five statistical procedures: (1) cross-sectional dependence test, (2) slope homogeneity test, (3) second-generation unit root analysis, (4) co-integration analysis and (5) Dumitrescu–Hurlin causality. Causality was tested using the Dumitrescu–Hurlin methodology with panel data for eight Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries and yearly observations for 2006–2023. Findings The co-integration test confirmed the existence of a long-run relationship between political freedom and women's leadership and political participation. The causality test demonstrated bidirectional causality between the two variables. Political freedom influenced women's leadership and participation and vice versa. Research limitations/implications As the sample included only ASEAN member countries, the results may differ from those of other countries, limiting their generalisability. Practical implications Our study verified that political freedom allows women to rise to political leadership positions. Furthermore, empowered, elected, and agenda-setting women expand political freedoms. Hence, the findings can serve as a reference for ASEAN analysts and policymakers to develop long-term gender-oriented reforms that enhance women's leadership and political participation in ASEAN countries. Originality/value The study's novelty lies in its causal investigation of the relationships between political freedom and women's leadership and political participation. It contributes to the public leadership literature by demonstrating how political freedom influences women's leadership and political participation.

This article examines the effectiveness of the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA) in enhancing the digital skills of rural citizens and expanding their economic, social, and political freedoms by using survey-based capability index evaluation. While the pan-India survey with 24,141 PMGDISHA trainees highlights significant coverage of rural youth and progress in bridging the gender divide, it has limited reach among other rural segments, such as the working population and housewives. Although the findings reveal an enhancement of digital skills and expansion of various freedoms, the impact varied depending on the conversion factors, such as socio-economic and demographic characteristics, trainee motivation, state efforts in ensuring digital access and infrastructure, and the facilitation measures of CSCs to beneficiaries. The article argues that the programme was limited in scope, as many participants could not link the training to their day-to-day life. The article suggests customising the future phases of such training to local needs, to ensure that rural citizens derive the potential benefits.

This book review examines Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson’s The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty, which argues that political liberty emerges only when a capable state is balanced by an organized and empowered society. The authors conceptualize this equilibrium as the “narrow corridor,” a fragile space in which state authority provides order while societal power restrains despotism. Using historical and comparative evidence from Europe, the Islamic world, and contemporary states such as China, India, and the United States, the book demonstrates how deviations from this balance produce either authoritarianism or disorder, both of which erode freedom. The review highlights the book’s contributions to understanding the role of institutions, social norms, and technological change in shaping liberty. Overall, the work offers a coherent and historically grounded framework for analyzing the persistence, decline, and renewal of political freedom.

The Constitution of India serves as a transformative framework aimed at securing political freedom and promoting social justice within a diverse society. Its designers intentionally embedded structural contradictions such as balancing equality with affirmative action, secularism with religious personal laws, and a federal system supported by central authority to maintain governance flexibility. These contradictions have become more pronounced with changing political, social, and technological landscapes. Key factors such as judicial interpretation, technological advances, declining public trust in representative institutions, and debates over constitutional morality have altered the dynamics of constitutional democracy. Particularly in the digital era, conflicts surrounding rights versus regulation, privacy against surveillance, and citizen sovereignty in relation to corporate influence have surfaced. This analysis argues that these constitutional contradictions exemplify a living constitution rather than indicating systemic flaws. However, if not addressed, they could undermine democratic legitimacy and social justice. The study emphasizes that the constitution's effectiveness relies not solely on institutional reform but also on fostering an informed and engaged citizenry.

ABSTRACT In autocracies, informal, autonomous movements of dissenting civil society are crucial in constructing or protecting a democratic political culture. The comparative analysis demonstrates how underground communities in communism and student protest movements in current electoral autocratic Hungary nurtured the spirit of political freedoms, while refraining from mobilizing for political change. I explored the following movements: (1) the Balatonboglár Chapel Studio of officially unacknowledged artists (1970–1973), (2) the Monday Free University where prohibited lectures on social sciences and humanities were delivered (1978–1985), (3) the Student Network (2011–2013), and (4) the FreeSZFE (2020) advocating for academic autonomy. I used concepts of Eastern European radical theorists on civil society as interpretative frames. Parallel phenomena were found regarding their goals and operation, governmental attacks, and resilience strategies. The hypotheses of the comparability of their situation regarding the state authorities’ attitude and their contribution to the preservation of democratic culture, based on desk research, were tested through qualitative, semi-structured interviews with key members of the above movements and experts. The paper explores how civil society movements resisting arbitrary political power, even if unsuccessful in protest and despite political self-restraint, contribute to the rediscovery of politics and free action in autonomous spaces of appearance.

The study examined the regulation of party switching among members of Indonesia’s Regional People’s Representative Councils (DPRD) through an integrated analysis of constitutional law, political rights theory, and Indonesian Islamic jurisprudence. It critically evaluated Constitutional Court Decision No. 88/PUU-XXI/2023 to assess how individual political rights are balanced with institutional stability. Employing a normative legal research approach, the study combined statutory, case-based, and conceptual analyses, enriched with comparative insights from Malaysia, Pakistan, India, and South Africa. The findings found out that current legal mechanisms, particularly the Inter-Temporal Replacement (PAW) procedure under Article 193 of Law No. 23 of 2014, disproportionately empower political parties, undermining electoral legitimacy and legislators’ autonomy. By integrating maqāṣid al-sharī‘ah principles, including al-‘adl (justice), al-maṣlaḥah (public welfare), amanah (trust), and ḥurriyyah siyāsiyyah (political freedom), the study proposed normative and practical reforms to enhance proportionality, transparency, and fairness in regulating party switching. The research contributed to scholarship by linking constitutional law, political representation, and Islamic ethical principles, providing theoretical insights and actionable recommendations to strengthen democratic representation, protect political rights, and reinforce institutional legitimacy in Indonesia.

The article describes how the problem of maintaining social stability in Ukrainian society during wartime prompts a search for ways to strengthen solidarity, which largely determines this stability. The authors suhhest that one such way could be to expand the conditions for human development, which have been significantly reduced during the war, provided there is a regular connection between this development and solidarity. Therefore, the aim of the study is to determine the existence of this connection. The study compares indicators measured in the EVS/WVS 2017–2020 project, that characterise the state of solidarity in the countries leading the global human development ranking (Human Development Index 2022) as well as in Ukraine. The results of the comparison revealed differences: solidarity indicators were significantly higher in the countries leading the human development ranking than in Ukraine. It was noted that these differences were clearly evident in all the indicators analysed in the vertical dimension of solidarity (people’s attitudes towards institutions of power) and the horizontal dimension of solidarity (attitudes towards other people), in particular with regard to people’s self-identification with their country, public trust in the executive, representative and judicial branches of government, and people’s hypothetical trust in the majority of people in general, strangers and people they know personally. The uniform direction of the identified differences gives the authors grounds to conclude that there is a central trend linking human development conditions and the state of solidarity in society. Empirical confirmation of the theoretical assumption about the link between solidarity and human development allows the authors to consider policies aimed at expanding opportunities for human development as one of the means of strengthening social solidarity – an indispensable factor in ensuring social stability, which is critically important for military resistance and post-war reconstruction in Ukraine. The article identyifies the cornerstones of the concept of human development as the fundamental guidelines for policies aimed at strengthening solidarity: improving the activities of institutions in the areas of promoting public health, quality of education, conditions for obtaining a decent income, productive creative work, and ensuring political, economic and social freedoms.

Elections are the basic foundation of democracy. Representatives of the people are elected in elections. Ancient Greece was a small city-state. There were very strict provisions for political participation. At that time, citizens continued to practice direct democracy with a small number. Although citizens were not directly involved in governance, they adopted the process of electing representatives through their representatives. Since elections are the basis of democracy, it is considered necessary in the process of running a state. In fact, elections are also a regular process of understanding the opinions or wishes of the general public. Because in modern political systems, elections are a process of understanding the opinions of the people. Democracy is found to be conducted in two ways: direct and indirect. In direct democracy, the people themselves directly participate and run their state system. Forming a government, formulating rules, implementing them, and administering justice are the concepts of direct democracy. Elections are the main means of political recruitment. This is a powerful means of legitimizing power. Currently, indirect elections and systems are being implemented in practice. Nowadays, due to the large states and large populations, all the people cannot gather at once and make any decisions. Therefore, it is customary for the people to elect their representatives to run the state or government. After such representatives are elected by the general public, they run the government according to the democratic system.The system of running the state through such representatives of the people is called indirect democracy or representative democracy. In fact, the modern system of popular representation is considered a great invention and achievement of democracy. The modern representative system elects a democratic government that exists in the name of the entire people, but is formed by the majority of the people. Countries around the world have adopted different electoral systems. There are four types of electoral systems in operation, including the first-past-the-post system, the proportional electoral system, and the mixed electoral system. In addition, there are 12 electoral systems. Thus, since one of the beautiful aspects of democracy is elections, its importance is increasing day by day. Various electoral systems have played an important role in the establishment of peace and security, the development of political freedom, and the establishment of the rule of law. Since elections are the standard and expression of democracy, the people exercise their sovereign rights through elections. Although elections are not the solution to regional, ethnic, communal, religious, and other disputes, they present alternatives in the process of building a democratic system.

This article examines the paradox of democracy in the Indonesian electoral system through the conflict between the right of recall by constituents and the principle of secrecy regulated in the Election Law. Normatively, the principle of secrecy is intended to protect the political freedom of voters from pressure and intimidation. However, in practice, this principle has lost its substantive meaning when people's political choices become public consumption and are even used as a tool for political transactions. At the same time, the people as constituents do not have the constitutional right to withdraw the mandate against the people's representatives who are not trustworthy, because the power of recall is entirely in the hands of political parties. This study uses a juridical-normative approach with conceptual analysis and case studies to examine the principle of secrecy that is no longer appropriate in the legislative election system and the mechanism of recall of the principle of people's sovereignty as stipulated in Article 1 paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution. Using the perspective of legal positivism, this study found a gap between the formal legality of the electoral system and the morality of democratic justice. The positivization of election law that places the party as the owner of the people's representative seat has shifted the sovereignty of the people to the sovereignty of the party. The results of the study show that the death of constituent sovereignty is the result of political party dominance over the representation mechanism and weak protection of people's political rights after the election. The right of recall should be returned to the people (constituents) as the owners of the legitimate political mandate through a constituency-based recall (people's recall right/constituency recall) with the mechanism of 1) recall petition; 2) public ethics and fact testing by independent institutions; and 3) political parties cannot reject or hinder the submission of recall if they have met the constitutional and administrative requirements. Political parties should only play a role, as facilitators, not executors.

This article explores the constitutional implications of an extractivist political economy through material lenses, challenging dominant constitutional theories that marginalise the relationship between legal orders and natural resources. Traditional constitutional thought prioritises political freedom while neglecting the foundational role of necessity – particularly the organisation of human labour in relation to nature. The study traces how extractivist political economies shape legal orders, embedding resource valorisation into constitutional frameworks. It highlights how extractivism influences both domestic and international legal norms, particularly in Latin America, where legal and financial mechanisms reinforce dependence on natural resource exploitation. The Chilean constituent process serves as a case study, illustrating how entrenched extractivist interests and imaginaries framed the available options for constituent power, preventing a full departure from an extractivist political economy. Ultimately, the article demonstrates that extractivism is not merely an economic model but an entrenched constitutional reality, influencing legal imagination and limiting the options for alternative constitutional designs.

Korea’s rapid transition from a manufacturing-based regional economy to a service-oriented and urban-centered structure has intensified population decline and economic stagnation in non-metropolitan areas. Simultaneously, diverse manifestations of climate change across regions highlight the urgent need for localized governance and policy responses. Despite these pressing regional disparities, Korea’s political system continues to prohibit the establishment of regional political parties. Over sixty years since the Third Republic and eight rounds of local elections have passed without institutional reform, leaving local governance dominated by major national parties based in the capital region. Consequently, local elections have functioned merely as proxy contests for national-level politics, reinforcing metropolitan centralization and regional dependency on the central government. Although recent legislative reforms—such as the Completely Amended Local Autonomy Act (2021) and the Local Decentralization and Balanced Development Act (2023)—have sought to promote resident-centered governance and structural diversity, the Political Parties Act still allows only nationwide parties. This legal constraint prevents the emergence of regionally grounded political organizations and think tanks capable of developing policies that reflect local needs and characteristics. Repeated academic appeals from the fields of political science, constitutional law, and local autonomy studies to legalize regional parties have failed to yield legislative change. The underlying cause lies in the entrenched interests of major political parties that control the legislative process. The Constitutional Court’s 2023 decision (2021Hun-Ga23, etc.) failed to reach a finding of unconstitutionality due to quorum issues and neglected to consider the clause’s implications for local autonomy. Future constitutional review must proactively examine whether such institutional inertia results from conflicts of interest between dominant parties and democratic pluralism. Recognizing the long-standing deadlock surrounding the nationwide party requirement, the Constitutional Court should reassess its constitutionality through a more principled and context-sensitive approach that prioritizes political freedom and genuine local self-governance.

ABSTRACT Is the circular economy merely a technical issue independent of political factors? This study moves beyond the technical dimensions of circularity to explore its political determinants. While a limited number of studies have examined institutional quality indicators, a significant gap remains in the political and institutional dimensions of the circular economy. This study is the first to investigate the impact of association and organization rights (AOR) on circular economy development. Covering 30 European countries from June 2000 to 2022, the analysis examines whether AOR facilitates the transition to a circular economy. Additionally, the study accounts for key socio‐economic factors, including income level, inequality, population density and trade openness. The findings indicate that AOR positively influences the circular economy transition. Moreover, income level, population density and trade openness exhibit positive effects, whereas inequality has a negative impact. Robustness checks using an alternative AOR measure confirm these results. The findings highlight the importance of political freedoms in fostering circularity and suggest that enhancing AOR could create a win–win opportunity for achieving sustainability goals, particularly in Europe and globally.

The area of the Balkan Peninsula has been a zone of conflicting geopolitical interests for centuries. For centuries, influences from the West, East, North and South have shaped this area. The past three turbulent decades have brought great changes to this area. From changing borders and state structures, ideological changes, restructuring the economy, to international sanctions, ethnic and religious conflicts with tens of thousands of victims and war crimes. The collapse of the economic and political systems of the communist countries resulted in these societies falling into a state of complete social and value confusion. Continuity of national issues and frozen conflicts in Southeast Europe came to the fore again - due to the historical heritage, which created numerous ethnic and religious mixtures in this area, which again represents a fertile ground for geopolitical interference and foreign influences. The states created by the dissolution of the SFRY became to a greater or lesser extent subject to the influence of foreign factors, both in the regulation of internal policy and in the tracing of foreign policy directions. Such a factual state of limited sovereignty created a kind of: protectorates, semi-protectorates, ambassadorships. The turbulent geo-economic and geo-political movements of the past decades, the movement from a unipolar to a multi-polar global order, with more economic, military and political centers of power - has a significant impact on the areas located on the periphery of the capitalist system and vulgarized neoliberalism. The ex-YU space represents a typical syndrome of emphasizing small differences, and on the other hand - there is much more that unites, mutual respect, solidarity during natural disasters, floods, earthquakes, fires and during pandemics. There is an ongoing geopolitical struggle, in which, in order to realize certain political and economic interests, various means are used against the targeted states, from hybrid war, sanctions, armed conflicts based on the model of „controlled chaos“. The effort of the Great Powers to achieve stability in the world is often wrong, because the international environment is an excellent example of a chaotic system. The world is destined to be chaotic, because geopolitical players have different goals and values. Therefore, the great powers see chaos as a source of opportunity and pursue the illusory goal of global stability. The geopolitical strategy of „controlled chaos“ produced an adequate reaction, which is also reflected in the media field. The wide use of mass media and new technologies in such complex international relations, with multiple crisis hotspots (Middle East, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Iran, Venezuela, North Korea, islands in the South China Sea, neuralgic hotspots in Africa) is evident. So, even though a deceptive peace reigns at the global level, „below the surface“, the conflicting geopolitical interests of leading but also regional states intersect in the mediasphere through special services. At the beginning of the new millennium, the world is facing numerous challenges. The challenges are of a security, political, economic, ecological, cultural, technological nature, with the enormous power and use of mass media. The economic rise of China, the military and political rise of Russia, the creation of the BRICS economic alliance, the rise of South American economies striving for independence from the influence of the USA - represent new factors on the geopolitical map of the world. New, economic-political organizations are trying to reduce the power of the IMF and reduce the use of petro-dollars, while international political relations are moving towards the tendency of creating a new multipolar world, with more economic, political and military power centers. A multipolar world, the emergence of which can be seen during the second decade of the new millennium, global hotspots in the Middle East, the migrant crisis, the struggle over the deposits and flows of energy sources and water sources, the struggle for the influence of the Great Powers through the so-called hybrid wars - have their consequences on the territory of Southeast Europe.Small countries, like the Balkan ones, cannot allow themselves some foreign political freedom and strategy and geopolitical games. Therefore, they act towards the Great Powers - primarily with tactics of survival and short-term gains.

Childfree people-people who do not have children and do not want to have children in the future-represent and large and growing percentage of the population in wealthy countries. However, less is known about childfree people in developing countries. To facilitate this research, we developed software to identify childfree people in data from the Demographic and Health Surveys. Using this software, we estimated the prevalence of childfree people in 51 developing countries. Among single women ages 15-29, we found substantial cross-national and within-region variation in childfree prevalence, ranging from 0.3% in Liberia to 15.6% in Papua New Guinea. We also estimated the association between being childfree and country-level indicators of human development, gender equality, and political freedom. Results suggest that the prevalence of childfree people in a country is associated with the country's level of human development, and to a lesser extent their gender equality and political freedom. These results suggest that some developing countries have large populations of childfree people, and thus that being childfree is not a choice restricted to those living in the West or in wealthy countries. As developing countries evolve in terms of their human development, gender equality, and political freedom, it will be important to continue studying their childfree populations, both to understand demographic transitions in this part of the world, and to support its members' reproductive health and other needs.