| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,215 | 3,537 | 4,837 | |
| 2020 | R | 1,306 | 3,553 | 4,940 | |
| 2016 | R | 1,127 | 3,338 | 4,808 | |
| 2012 | R | 1,725 | 2,826 | 4,646 | |
| 2008 | R | 2,023 | 2,652 | 4,801 | |
| 2004 | R | 1,900 | 3,066 | 5,032 | |
| 2000 | R | 1,970 | 2,693 | 4,894 | |
| 1996 | R | 1,999 | 2,096 | 4,722 | |
| 1992 | R | 1,773 | 1,953 | 5,170 | |
| 1988 | R | 2,382 | 2,760 | 5,189 | |
| 1984 | R | 2,391 | 3,043 | 5,501 | |
| 1980 | R | 2,392 | 3,207 | 6,243 | |
| 1976 | D | 3,272 | 3,018 | 6,401 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,758 | 3,543 | 6,376 | |
| 1968 | R | 2,234 | 3,241 | 5,738 | |
| 1964 | D | 3,365 | 2,481 | 5,851 | |
| 1960 | R | 2,443 | 3,677 | 6,131 | |
| 1956 | R | 2,165 | 3,362 | 5,533 | |
| 1952 | R | 1,701 | 4,507 | 6,221 | |
| 1948 | D | 2,804 | 2,281 | 5,180 | |
| 1944 | R | 2,129 | 2,844 | 4,994 | |
| 1940 | R | 2,390 | 3,423 | 5,842 | |
| 1936 | D | 3,026 | 1,881 | 5,170 | |
| 1932 | D | 2,996 | 1,509 | 4,578 | |
| 1928 | R | 1,591 | 2,578 | 4,207 | |
| 1924 | R | 219 | 2,066 | 4,290 | |
| 1920 | R | 490 | 3,106 | 3,888 | |
| 1916 | R | 732 | 1,010 | 1,926 | |
| 1912 | D | 505 | 301 | 1,664 | |
| 1908 | R | 491 | 1,057 | 1,624 | |
| 1904 | R | 269 | 1,185 | 1,556 | |
| 1900 | R | 692 | 1,112 | 1,858 | |
| 1896 | D | 919 | 862 | 1,815 | |
| 1892 | D | 648 | 295 | 1,351 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Pipestone County, anchored by its small county-seat city on the southwestern Minnesota prairie, has delivered Republican presidential margins exceeding 40 points in recent cycles, making it among the most lopsided counties in a state that remains closely contested statewide.
The Democratic margin in Pipestone County peaked at thirty-two points in 1932. By 1980 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was forty-eight points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Pipestone County's median household income of $69,628 sits well below state and national norms, and 11% 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 Ida County and Scott County.