| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,747 | 5,889 | 7,755 | |
| 2020 | R | 1,830 | 6,089 | 8,077 | |
| 2016 | R | 1,584 | 5,739 | 7,694 | |
| 2012 | R | 2,362 | 4,756 | 7,282 | |
| 2008 | R | 3,181 | 4,329 | 7,650 | |
| 2004 | R | 2,529 | 5,153 | 7,749 | |
| 2000 | R | 2,491 | 4,718 | 7,428 | |
| 1996 | R | 2,679 | 3,137 | 6,815 | |
| 1992 | D | 3,286 | 3,053 | 8,061 | |
| 1988 | R | 2,863 | 4,264 | 7,153 | |
| 1984 | R | 2,182 | 5,665 | 7,874 | |
| 1980 | R | 2,463 | 5,241 | 8,126 | |
| 1976 | R | 3,485 | 4,434 | 8,057 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,553 | 5,558 | 8,125 | |
| 1968 | R | 2,495 | 4,781 | 8,137 | |
| 1964 | D | 4,239 | 3,901 | 8,140 | |
| 1960 | R | 3,015 | 5,329 | 8,353 | |
| 1956 | R | 2,485 | 5,304 | 7,794 | |
| 1952 | R | 2,565 | 5,569 | 8,139 | |
| 1948 | R | 2,438 | 3,884 | 6,413 | |
| 1944 | R | 2,858 | 4,577 | 7,514 | |
| 1940 | R | 4,335 | 5,022 | 9,446 | |
| 1936 | D | 4,268 | 4,040 | 8,492 | |
| 1932 | D | 4,318 | 2,765 | 7,182 | |
| 1928 | R | 2,550 | 4,042 | 6,623 | |
| 1924 | R | 2,749 | 3,082 | 6,155 | |
| 1920 | R | 2,174 | 3,026 | 5,304 | |
| 1916 | D | 3,431 | 2,992 | 6,634 | |
| 1912 | D | 1,800 | 862 | 3,720 | |
| 1908 | D | 1,938 | 1,684 | 3,816 | |
| 1904 | R | 1,604 | 1,778 | 3,689 | |
| 1900 | D | 2,042 | 1,793 | 3,934 | |
| 1896 | D | 2,062 | 1,693 | 3,800 | |
| 1892 | D | 1,542 | 1,500 | 3,460 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Richland County, tucked in southeastern Illinois's oil-patch belt, recorded an R+53.4 presidential margin in 2024 — among the widest in a state whose statewide results run sharply the other direction.
The Democratic margin in Richland County peaked at twenty-five points in 1912. By 1996 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was fifty-three points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Richland County's median household income of $62,455 sits well below state and national norms, and 12% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The shift here is part of a broader realignment of working-class places across the country. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Wabash County and Crawford County.