| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 724 | 1,902 | 2,660 | |
| 2020 | R | 728 | 1,882 | 2,646 | |
| 2016 | R | 626 | 1,684 | 2,420 | |
| 2012 | R | 896 | 1,383 | 2,324 | |
| 2008 | R | 1,038 | 1,366 | 2,444 | |
| 2004 | R | 989 | 1,571 | 2,573 | |
| 2000 | R | 843 | 1,371 | 2,283 | |
| 1996 | D | 964 | 902 | 2,201 | |
| 1992 | D | 890 | 801 | 2,144 | |
| 1988 | R | 895 | 1,159 | 2,065 | |
| 1984 | R | 839 | 1,468 | 2,317 | |
| 1980 | R | 819 | 1,206 | 2,149 | |
| 1976 | R | 1,017 | 1,135 | 2,187 | |
| 1972 | R | 509 | 1,374 | 1,915 | |
| 1968 | R | 669 | 1,172 | 1,973 | |
| 1964 | D | 1,249 | 900 | 2,154 | |
| 1960 | R | 828 | 1,497 | 2,332 | |
| 1956 | R | 622 | 1,535 | 2,158 | |
| 1952 | R | 627 | 1,511 | 2,161 | |
| 1948 | R | 687 | 1,209 | 1,941 | |
| 1944 | R | 673 | 1,344 | 2,038 | |
| 1940 | R | 919 | 1,811 | 2,736 | |
| 1936 | R | 1,157 | 1,757 | 2,953 | |
| 1932 | R | 569 | 1,090 | 1,721 | |
| 1928 | R | 289 | 1,707 | 2,018 | |
| 1924 | R | 280 | 1,130 | 1,587 | |
| 1920 | R | 389 | 993 | 1,762 | |
| 1916 | R | 463 | 617 | 1,312 | |
| 1912 | D | 373 | 240 | 1,560 | |
| 1908 | R | 512 | 1,119 | 1,837 | |
| 1904 | R | 411 | 1,328 | 1,949 | |
| 1900 | R | 714 | 1,309 | 2,137 | |
| 1896 | R | 805 | 1,224 | 2,120 | |
| 1892 | R | 660 | 938 | 1,727 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Forest County's roughly 5,000 residents make it the smallest county in Pennsylvania by population, and its R+44.5 margin in 2024 reflects a pattern of lopsided results common to rural, heavily forested stretches of the northern tier.
The Democratic margin in Forest County peaked at sixteen points in 1964. By 2000 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was forty-four points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Forest County's median household income of $52,191 sits well below state and national norms, and 12% 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 Lake of the Woods County and Crow Wing County.
