| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 4,075 | 6,390 | 10,644 | |
| 2020 | R | 4,337 | 6,161 | 10,703 | |
| 2016 | R | 3,599 | 5,295 | 9,631 | |
| 2012 | D | 4,972 | 4,529 | 9,649 | |
| 2008 | D | 5,221 | 4,289 | 9,665 | |
| 2004 | R | 4,747 | 4,869 | 9,694 | |
| 2000 | D | 4,033 | 4,031 | 8,344 | |
| 1996 | D | 3,856 | 2,966 | 7,676 | |
| 1992 | D | 3,296 | 2,965 | 8,240 | |
| 1988 | D | 4,032 | 3,373 | 7,479 | |
| 1984 | R | 3,086 | 4,617 | 7,748 | |
| 1980 | R | 2,589 | 4,398 | 7,797 | |
| 1976 | R | 3,354 | 4,308 | 7,822 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,465 | 4,452 | 7,023 | |
| 1968 | R | 2,675 | 4,494 | 7,614 | |
| 1964 | D | 4,617 | 3,106 | 7,735 | |
| 1960 | R | 3,203 | 5,217 | 8,425 | |
| 1956 | R | 2,912 | 5,344 | 8,258 | |
| 1952 | R | 2,447 | 6,176 | 8,640 | |
| 1948 | R | 2,958 | 3,957 | 7,016 | |
| 1944 | R | 2,610 | 4,673 | 7,307 | |
| 1940 | R | 3,293 | 5,521 | 8,840 | |
| 1936 | D | 4,385 | 3,686 | 8,235 | |
| 1932 | D | 4,718 | 3,277 | 8,068 | |
| 1928 | R | 2,517 | 4,856 | 7,415 | |
| 1924 | R | 1,478 | 4,625 | 7,615 | |
| 1920 | R | 1,420 | 5,697 | 7,315 | |
| 1916 | R | 1,595 | 2,862 | 4,503 | |
| 1912 | D | 1,938 | 1,036 | 4,420 | |
| 1908 | R | 1,986 | 2,455 | 4,532 | |
| 1904 | R | 1,926 | 2,691 | 4,726 | |
| 1900 | R | 2,131 | 2,740 | 4,965 | |
| 1896 | R | 2,128 | 2,717 | 4,985 | |
| 1892 | D | 2,347 | 2,130 | 4,644 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Cedar County's roughly 18,000 residents are concentrated in small agricultural towns, and its presidential margins have widened consistently over the past three cycles, reaching R+21.8 in 2024.
The county's recent history is a story of close margins. The Democratic margin reached twenty points in 1912; the Republican margin reached fifty-eight points in 1920. Most other elections have been decided by single-digit points.
Cedar County's demographics — a population of 18,349, a 94% non-Hispanic-white share, a median household income of $80,602 — situate the county close to national averages on several dimensions. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Tama County and Mitchell County.
