| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 16,603 | 34,654 | 51,706 | |
| 2020 | R | 16,955 | 33,798 | 51,308 | |
| 2016 | R | 14,964 | 28,479 | 44,673 | |
| 2012 | R | 17,062 | 25,793 | 43,340 | |
| 2008 | R | 17,363 | 26,078 | 43,835 | |
| 2004 | R | 14,215 | 22,750 | 37,079 | |
| 2000 | D | 19,064 | 13,455 | 32,746 | |
| 1996 | R | 12,728 | 13,474 | 28,241 | |
| 1992 | R | 13,037 | 13,650 | 30,522 | |
| 1988 | R | 10,321 | 14,039 | 24,397 | |
| 1984 | R | 10,288 | 17,095 | 27,472 | |
| 1980 | D | 12,219 | 10,828 | 23,498 | |
| 1976 | D | 14,406 | 8,106 | 22,588 | |
| 1972 | R | 4,994 | 13,726 | 19,048 | |
| 1968 | R | 5,661 | 7,298 | 22,608 | |
| 1964 | D | 10,836 | 7,874 | 18,710 | |
| 1960 | D | 10,545 | 8,257 | 18,802 | |
| 1956 | D | 8,408 | 7,076 | 15,484 | |
| 1952 | D | 9,709 | 7,606 | 17,315 | |
| 1948 | D | 6,039 | 1,905 | 9,261 | |
| 1944 | D | 8,170 | 2,636 | 10,806 | |
| 1940 | D | 9,346 | 1,970 | 11,316 | |
| 1936 | D | 11,393 | 2,116 | 13,509 | |
| 1932 | D | 8,016 | 1,904 | 9,945 | |
| 1928 | D | 4,914 | 4,766 | 9,680 | |
| 1924 | D | 3,749 | 1,743 | 5,529 | |
| 1920 | D | 5,181 | 2,953 | 8,134 | |
| 1916 | D | 2,764 | 1,497 | 4,261 | |
| 1912 | D | 2,351 | 81 | 3,375 | |
| 1908 | D | 2,282 | 1,459 | 3,742 | |
| 1904 | D | 2,162 | 1,036 | 3,202 | |
| 1900 | D | 2,228 | 1,311 | 3,579 | |
| 1896 | D | 2,664 | 1,216 | 3,924 | |
| 1892 | D | 1,788 | 722 | 3,483 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Cleveland County sits at the edge of North Carolina's Piedmont, where a manufacturing and textile heritage has accompanied a long rightward shift; the 2024 presidential margin of R+34.9 reflects a pattern consistent across the surrounding foothills region.
The unraveling was not abrupt. The Democratic margin in Cleveland County peaked at sixty-nine points in 1936; it narrowed steadily over the late twentieth century. The 2004 election delivered the county to the Republican party for the first time in many years, by a margin of twenty-three points. By 2024, the margin had settled into deep Republican territory.
The economic and demographic context is severe. Cleveland County's median household income of $58,534 is among the lowest of any county in the United States; 17% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Currituck County and Burke County.