| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 5,273 | 11,772 | 17,310 | |
| 2020 | R | 5,199 | 10,861 | 16,281 | |
| 2016 | R | 4,249 | 8,505 | 13,449 | |
| 2012 | R | 6,338 | 6,988 | 13,535 | |
| 2008 | D | 7,496 | 6,793 | 14,567 | |
| 2004 | R | 6,984 | 7,088 | 14,226 | |
| 2000 | D | 6,287 | 5,937 | 12,607 | |
| 1996 | D | 6,311 | 3,742 | 11,683 | |
| 1992 | D | 5,346 | 3,916 | 12,163 | |
| 1988 | R | 4,710 | 5,661 | 10,448 | |
| 1984 | R | 3,764 | 6,587 | 10,412 | |
| 1980 | R | 4,164 | 5,719 | 10,718 | |
| 1976 | R | 4,153 | 4,879 | 9,126 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,434 | 4,402 | 6,988 | |
| 1968 | R | 1,909 | 3,315 | 5,831 | |
| 1964 | D | 2,927 | 2,258 | 5,197 | |
| 1960 | R | 1,507 | 3,616 | 5,130 | |
| 1956 | R | 1,194 | 3,721 | 4,928 | |
| 1952 | R | 1,059 | 3,529 | 4,630 | |
| 1948 | R | 1,197 | 2,512 | 3,805 | |
| 1944 | R | 1,078 | 2,636 | 3,735 | |
| 1940 | R | 1,277 | 3,004 | 4,300 | |
| 1936 | R | 1,494 | 1,979 | 3,708 | |
| 1932 | D | 1,741 | 1,474 | 3,324 | |
| 1928 | R | 381 | 1,920 | 2,324 | |
| 1924 | R | 358 | 1,920 | 2,472 | |
| 1920 | R | 511 | 1,762 | 2,398 | |
| 1916 | R | 769 | 1,049 | 1,929 | |
| 1912 | R | 435 | 563 | 1,817 | |
| 1908 | R | 567 | 1,345 | 1,974 | |
| 1904 | R | 519 | 1,453 | 2,049 | |
| 1900 | R | 640 | 1,182 | 1,858 | |
| 1896 | R | 723 | 886 | 1,669 | |
| 1892 | D | 811 | 719 | 1,716 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Clare County, anchored by the small city of Clare, has shifted decisively toward Republican presidential candidates over the past two decades. Its largely rural, working-class population gave the GOP nominee a 37-point margin in 2024, among the widest in the Lower Peninsula.
The Democratic margin in Clare County peaked at twenty-two points in 1996. By 2012 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was thirty-eight points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Clare County's median household income of $49,384 sits well below state and national norms, and 22% 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 Alpena County and Roscommon County.