| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,155 | 7,019 | 8,275 | |
| 2020 | R | 1,187 | 7,176 | 8,499 | |
| 2016 | R | 1,048 | 6,967 | 8,301 | |
| 2012 | R | 1,514 | 5,988 | 7,697 | |
| 2008 | R | 2,547 | 5,390 | 8,071 | |
| 2004 | R | 2,139 | 6,102 | 8,287 | |
| 2000 | R | 2,209 | 5,347 | 7,693 | |
| 1996 | R | 3,054 | 4,029 | 8,140 | |
| 1992 | R | 3,332 | 3,809 | 8,872 | |
| 1988 | R | 3,135 | 5,481 | 8,660 | |
| 1984 | R | 2,621 | 6,298 | 8,951 | |
| 1980 | R | 3,258 | 6,013 | 9,557 | |
| 1976 | R | 4,303 | 5,211 | 9,581 | |
| 1972 | R | 2,763 | 6,400 | 9,175 | |
| 1968 | R | 2,993 | 5,532 | 9,284 | |
| 1964 | D | 5,198 | 4,745 | 9,943 | |
| 1960 | R | 3,954 | 6,652 | 10,615 | |
| 1956 | R | 3,942 | 6,286 | 10,242 | |
| 1952 | R | 3,911 | 6,495 | 10,418 | |
| 1948 | R | 4,070 | 4,984 | 9,114 | |
| 1944 | R | 4,019 | 5,683 | 9,763 | |
| 1940 | R | 5,569 | 6,556 | 12,192 | |
| 1936 | D | 5,752 | 5,528 | 11,330 | |
| 1932 | D | 5,488 | 4,097 | 9,656 | |
| 1928 | R | 3,108 | 5,189 | 8,364 | |
| 1924 | R | 4,247 | 4,937 | 9,368 | |
| 1920 | R | 3,137 | 4,908 | 8,113 | |
| 1916 | R | 4,934 | 5,383 | 10,549 | |
| 1912 | D | 2,378 | 1,586 | 5,627 | |
| 1908 | R | 2,791 | 2,946 | 5,940 | |
| 1904 | R | 2,416 | 3,078 | 5,848 | |
| 1900 | R | 3,062 | 3,117 | 6,365 | |
| 1896 | D | 3,102 | 2,906 | 6,079 | |
| 1892 | D | 2,372 | 2,350 | 5,371 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Wayne County in southeastern Illinois delivered a 70-point Republican presidential margin in 2024, reflecting the rural, small-town character common to the Little Egypt region, where agricultural economies and sparse population density correlate with some of the state's most lopsided partisan results.
The Democratic margin in Wayne County peaked at fourteen points in 1932. By 1968 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was seventy-one points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Wayne County's median household income of $55,521 sits well below state and national norms, and 16% 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 Jefferson County and Mineral County.