| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 1,774 | 7,112 | 9,001 | |
| 2020 | R | 1,903 | 7,155 | 9,185 | |
| 2016 | R | 1,707 | 6,533 | 8,631 | |
| 2012 | R | 2,580 | 5,758 | 8,521 | |
| 2008 | R | 3,381 | 5,334 | 8,878 | |
| 2004 | R | 3,206 | 5,732 | 8,992 | |
| 2000 | R | 3,156 | 4,985 | 8,408 | |
| 1996 | D | 3,363 | 3,123 | 7,674 | |
| 1992 | D | 3,546 | 2,851 | 8,303 | |
| 1988 | R | 3,402 | 4,149 | 7,572 | |
| 1984 | R | 2,984 | 5,181 | 8,165 | |
| 1980 | R | 3,704 | 4,391 | 8,456 | |
| 1976 | D | 4,921 | 3,715 | 8,684 | |
| 1972 | R | 3,057 | 4,892 | 7,949 | |
| 1968 | R | 3,557 | 3,590 | 7,930 | |
| 1964 | D | 5,958 | 3,077 | 9,035 | |
| 1960 | R | 4,186 | 5,387 | 9,573 | |
| 1956 | R | 4,547 | 5,184 | 9,731 | |
| 1952 | R | 4,450 | 5,924 | 10,408 | |
| 1948 | D | 5,342 | 3,808 | 9,164 | |
| 1944 | R | 4,885 | 5,171 | 10,062 | |
| 1940 | D | 6,271 | 5,443 | 11,735 | |
| 1936 | D | 6,872 | 4,546 | 11,478 | |
| 1932 | D | 6,687 | 2,856 | 9,681 | |
| 1928 | R | 3,676 | 5,783 | 9,490 | |
| 1924 | D | 4,839 | 3,593 | 9,239 | |
| 1920 | D | 5,419 | 4,645 | 10,246 | |
| 1916 | D | 3,776 | 2,211 | 6,228 | |
| 1912 | D | 3,483 | 1,654 | 6,226 | |
| 1908 | D | 3,705 | 2,369 | 6,321 | |
| 1904 | D | 3,225 | 2,450 | 6,048 | |
| 1900 | D | 4,306 | 2,356 | 6,881 | |
| 1896 | D | 5,133 | 2,230 | 7,426 | |
| 1892 | D | 3,627 | 1,847 | 6,349 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Vernon County's R+59.5 margin in 2024 places it among Missouri's most heavily one-sided counties, reflecting the broader rural realignment that has reshaped small-population agricultural communities across the western Ozark fringe over the past two decades.
The Democratic margin in Vernon County peaked at forty points in 1932. By 2000 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was fifty-nine points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Vernon County's median household income of $52,230 sits well below state and national norms, and 19% 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 Ripley County and Clay County.