akashic
1876–2024
Wayne County, West Virginia
Wayne County·West Virginia

Wayne County has voted Republican for as long as anyone can remember.

A southwestern coalfield county that has swung sharply rightward over two decades

18762024·38 elections
Wayne County, West Virginia · Nyttend · Wikimedia Commons
Latest
R+53
in 2024
Archetype
Republican loyalist
since the recent cycles
Population
38,164
2024 ACS
Most similar
Cherokee County
OK · similarity 1.00
38 precincts · 15,747 votes cast
Trump · R+53
Margin
Turnout
Harris +50
Trump +50
Real precinct boundaries. Hover for vote totals.
YearWonMarginDemocraticRepublicanTotal
2024R
−53.4%
3,53211,93415,747
2020R
−50.1%
4,08812,58516,947
2016R
−50.8%
3,35711,15215,347
2012R
−26.8%
4,9318,68814,009
2008R
−18.2%
6,1378,94715,426
2004R
−8.9%
8,41110,07018,609
2000R
−0.3%
7,9407,99316,241
1996D
+18.1%
8,3005,49215,476
1992D
+16.3%
8,3925,72916,347
1988D
+9.5%
8,6217,12315,775
1984R
−2.5%
8,3788,81117,236
1980D
+6.9%
8,6877,54116,719
1976D
+24.7%
9,9586,00915,967
1972R
−22.0%
6,2519,77516,026
1968D
+13.6%
8,2276,00416,319
1964D
+36.9%
11,5785,34016,918
1960D
+5.9%
9,1408,12817,268
1956R
−4.8%
7,6558,42916,084
1952D
+10.3%
8,6797,05915,738
1948D
+26.8%
7,6184,39412,031
1944D
+18.9%
6,6274,51611,143
1940D
+25.6%
9,6265,70115,327
1936D
+23.0%
8,9545,60314,588
1932D
+29.6%
8,6484,68213,420
1928R
−4.2%
5,1775,63010,849
1924D
+18.3%
5,8703,99910,247
1920D
+8.9%
4,4903,7548,244
1916D
+14.8%
2,9892,2155,247
1912D
+23.5%
2,6341,4654,981
1908D
+3.6%
2,5902,4105,041
1904D
+1.8%
2,4492,3624,860
1900R
−8.1%
2,2582,6544,912
1896D
+9.2%
2,4432,0314,488
1892D
+15.8%
2,0951,5143,685
1888
No data
1884
No data
1880
No data
1876
No data
Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
American
100.0%
African American
0.8%
Multiple ancestry combinations reported; no single grouping above 1%.
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
Sample size too small to break out by ancestry reliably.
American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander combined.
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
0.0%
speak English only
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Baptist
17.2%
Other Christian
4.6%
Methodist
4.6%
Pentecostal & Holiness
1.0%
Mainline Protestant
0.2%
Catholic & Orthodox
0.2%
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 72.2% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.

Wayne County sits along the Tug Fork on the Kentucky border, where a once reliably Democratic working-class electorate has shifted toward Republicans by double-digit margins each cycle since 2008, culminating in a 53-point gap in 2024.

The Republican margin in Wayne County reached its widest at fifty-three points in 2024. The margin in 2024 was fifty-three points, in line with the county's deep historical pattern.

Wayne County's loyalty is rooted in its place. Median household income of $58,878, a 96% non-Hispanic-white share, and a population of 38,164 together describe a community whose political habits are deeply settled. The county's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of Cherokee County and Livingston County.