| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,821 | 11,178 | 13,179 | |
| 2020 | R | 2,114 | 11,012 | 13,273 | |
| 2016 | R | 1,761 | 9,885 | 12,012 | |
| 2012 | R | 2,484 | 8,467 | 11,100 | |
| 2008 | R | 3,074 | 8,150 | 11,389 | |
| 2004 | R | 3,822 | 8,108 | 12,028 | |
| 2000 | R | 3,690 | 6,058 | 9,910 | |
| 1996 | R | 3,736 | 4,502 | 9,095 | |
| 1992 | R | 3,787 | 5,011 | 9,825 | |
| 1988 | R | 2,919 | 4,903 | 7,882 | |
| 1984 | R | 2,932 | 5,730 | 8,699 | |
| 1980 | R | 3,543 | 5,539 | 9,240 | |
| 1976 | R | 3,642 | 4,931 | 8,661 | |
| 1972 | R | 1,805 | 5,017 | 6,879 | |
| 1968 | R | 2,244 | 4,388 | 7,595 | |
| 1964 | D | 4,150 | 3,583 | 7,770 | |
| 1960 | R | 2,956 | 5,814 | 8,770 | |
| 1956 | R | 2,539 | 6,341 | 8,882 | |
| 1952 | R | 2,766 | 5,470 | 8,253 | |
| 1948 | R | 2,814 | 4,241 | 7,123 | |
| 1944 | R | 2,385 | 5,178 | 7,570 | |
| 1940 | R | 3,319 | 5,003 | 8,330 | |
| 1936 | R | 3,419 | 4,921 | 8,345 | |
| 1932 | R | 3,375 | 4,513 | 7,938 | |
| 1928 | R | 1,497 | 5,928 | 7,432 | |
| 1924 | R | 1,537 | 3,767 | 5,594 | |
| 1920 | R | 1,534 | 5,228 | 6,818 | |
| 1916 | R | 1,126 | 3,192 | 4,362 | |
| 1912 | R | 888 | 1,391 | 3,565 | |
| 1908 | R | 867 | 2,788 | 3,780 | |
| 1904 | R | 711 | 2,240 | 2,995 | |
| 1900 | R | 976 | 2,606 | 3,595 | |
| 1896 | R | 833 | 2,237 | 3,110 | |
| 1892 | R | 668 | 1,305 | 2,078 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Nestled in the Cumberland Mountains along the Tennessee border, Knox County recorded an R+71.1 margin in 2024, placing it among the most one-sided presidential results in the state and reflecting the deep partisan realignment of rural Appalachian Kentucky.
The Democratic margin in Knox County peaked at seven points in 1964. By 1968 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was seventy-one points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Knox County's median household income of $32,527 sits well below state and national norms, and 37% 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 Hawkins County and Grainger County.