| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,970 | 6,584 | 8,740 | |
| 2020 | R | 2,194 | 6,766 | 9,128 | |
| 2016 | R | 2,005 | 6,182 | 8,718 | |
| 2012 | R | 2,930 | 5,456 | 8,571 | |
| 2008 | R | 3,594 | 5,886 | 9,665 | |
| 2004 | R | 3,726 | 6,083 | 9,913 | |
| 2000 | R | 3,783 | 5,014 | 9,130 | |
| 1996 | R | 3,771 | 4,138 | 9,043 | |
| 1992 | D | 4,083 | 3,589 | 9,757 | |
| 1988 | R | 4,069 | 4,281 | 8,402 | |
| 1984 | R | 3,663 | 5,801 | 9,553 | |
| 1980 | R | 3,969 | 5,296 | 9,662 | |
| 1976 | D | 5,154 | 3,957 | 9,218 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,806 | 6,019 | 8,980 | |
| 1968 | R | 3,597 | 4,211 | 8,872 | |
| 1964 | D | 5,720 | 3,730 | 9,497 | |
| 1960 | R | 4,366 | 5,753 | 10,192 | |
| 1956 | R | 4,112 | 5,824 | 9,975 | |
| 1952 | R | 4,597 | 6,261 | 10,914 | |
| 1948 | D | 4,854 | 4,616 | 9,663 | |
| 1944 | R | 4,468 | 5,458 | 9,988 | |
| 1940 | D | 6,670 | 6,600 | 13,396 | |
| 1936 | D | 7,894 | 5,445 | 13,408 | |
| 1932 | D | 7,442 | 4,045 | 11,880 | |
| 1928 | R | 3,442 | 7,478 | 11,296 | |
| 1924 | R | 3,071 | 5,437 | 10,278 | |
| 1920 | R | 3,832 | 5,466 | 9,790 | |
| 1916 | D | 6,188 | 4,350 | 11,585 | |
| 1912 | D | 2,641 | 1,994 | 7,513 | |
| 1908 | R | 3,819 | 3,893 | 8,795 | |
| 1904 | R | 2,253 | 4,586 | 8,217 | |
| 1900 | D | 5,302 | 4,478 | 9,911 | |
| 1896 | D | 5,108 | 3,505 | 8,719 | |
| 1892 | R | 0 | 3,751 | 6,508 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Cherokee County, bordering Missouri and Oklahoma, posted an R+52.9 margin in 2024, reflecting the deep Republican alignment that has taken hold across rural, post-industrial corners of the Midwest over the past two decades.
The Democratic margin in Cherokee County peaked at twenty-nine points in 1932. 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. Cherokee County's median household income of $57,668 sits well below state and national norms, and 14% 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 Brown County and Texas County.