| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 392 | 2,067 | 2,506 | |
| 2020 | R | 393 | 2,117 | 2,572 | |
| 2016 | R | 424 | 2,054 | 2,602 | |
| 2012 | R | 657 | 1,796 | 2,453 | |
| 2008 | R | 690 | 1,793 | 2,483 | |
| 2004 | R | 898 | 1,742 | 2,640 | |
| 2000 | R | 1,068 | 1,388 | 2,482 | |
| 1996 | D | 1,258 | 1,042 | 2,698 | |
| 1992 | D | 1,314 | 910 | 3,091 | |
| 1988 | D | 1,482 | 1,266 | 2,775 | |
| 1984 | R | 1,264 | 1,796 | 3,080 | |
| 1980 | R | 1,410 | 1,702 | 3,206 | |
| 1976 | D | 1,911 | 1,127 | 3,064 | |
| 1972 | R | 798 | 2,050 | 2,919 | |
| 1968 | D | 1,192 | 1,016 | 3,113 | |
| 1964 | D | 2,216 | 1,123 | 3,339 | |
| 1960 | D | 1,634 | 1,619 | 3,253 | |
| 1956 | D | 1,889 | 1,398 | 3,287 | |
| 1952 | D | 2,117 | 1,897 | 4,014 | |
| 1948 | D | 2,613 | 738 | 3,351 | |
| 1944 | D | 2,711 | 1,266 | 3,994 | |
| 1940 | D | 3,121 | 1,616 | 4,760 | |
| 1936 | D | 3,842 | 1,181 | 5,040 | |
| 1932 | D | 4,426 | 758 | 5,184 | |
| 1928 | R | 1,605 | 2,419 | 4,048 | |
| 1924 | D | 1,825 | 1,581 | 3,705 | |
| 1920 | D | 2,260 | 1,820 | 4,252 | |
| 1916 | D | 1,500 | 685 | 2,555 | |
| 1912 | D | 1,063 | 587 | 1,942 | |
| 1908 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1904 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1900 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1896 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1892 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Cotton County's 2024 presidential margin of R+66.8 reflects a rural southwest Oklahoma electorate that has voted Republican by commanding double-digit margins for decades, with a small, stable population anchored by agriculture.
The unraveling was not abrupt. The Democratic margin in Cotton County peaked at seventy-one points in 1932; it narrowed steadily over the late twentieth century. The 2000 election delivered the county to the Republican party for the first time in many years, by a margin of thirteen points. By 2024, the margin had widened further.
The economic and demographic context is severe. Cotton County's median household income of $58,425 is among the lowest of any county in the United States; 21% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Garvin County and Kiowa County.