| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | D | 11,219 | 1,702 | 13,119 | |
| 2020 | D | 12,389 | 1,584 | 14,118 | |
| 2016 | D | 12,021 | 1,451 | 13,786 | |
| 2012 | D | 14,283 | 1,527 | 15,908 | |
| 2008 | D | 13,774 | 1,583 | 15,540 | |
| 2004 | D | 9,682 | 2,238 | 11,949 | |
| 2000 | D | 8,751 | 2,109 | 11,062 | |
| 1996 | D | 8,105 | 2,261 | 10,890 | |
| 1992 | D | 8,671 | 3,125 | 12,717 | |
| 1988 | D | 8,177 | 4,231 | 12,591 | |
| 1984 | D | 9,248 | 5,753 | 15,074 | |
| 1980 | D | 7,931 | 5,001 | 13,277 | |
| 1976 | D | 7,852 | 5,041 | 13,082 | |
| 1972 | R | 5,156 | 6,710 | 12,053 | |
| 1968 | D | 5,519 | 3,478 | 11,169 | |
| 1964 | D | 4,521 | 3,253 | 7,775 | |
| 1960 | D | 2,950 | 2,820 | 5,803 | |
| 1956 | R | 1,882 | 3,166 | 5,449 | |
| 1952 | R | 2,342 | 2,822 | 5,179 | |
| 1948 | D | 2,019 | 1,189 | 3,831 | |
| 1944 | D | 2,256 | 719 | 2,981 | |
| 1940 | D | 2,193 | 604 | 2,815 | |
| 1936 | D | 2,192 | 444 | 2,651 | |
| 1932 | D | 1,920 | 490 | 2,440 | |
| 1928 | D | 1,379 | 909 | 2,288 | |
| 1924 | D | 1,331 | 228 | 1,595 | |
| 1920 | D | 2,072 | 485 | 2,566 | |
| 1916 | D | 1,155 | 161 | 1,327 | |
| 1912 | D | 1,122 | 75 | 1,244 | |
| 1908 | D | 905 | 205 | 1,115 | |
| 1904 | D | 924 | 144 | 1,075 | |
| 1900 | D | 1,589 | 688 | 2,292 | |
| 1896 | D | 1,682 | 766 | 2,536 | |
| 1892 | D | 2,558 | 1,046 | 3,606 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Petersburg's electorate, roughly 80% Black, delivered a 72-point margin in 2024—among the widest of any jurisdiction in the commonwealth. The independent city's vote consistently anchors Democratic tallies in the Richmond metro's southern fringe.
The Democratic margin in Petersburg city peaked at eighty-four points in 1912. By 1976 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was seventy-three points, the most Democratic-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Petersburg city's median household income of $50,698 sits well below state and national norms, and 22% 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 Holmes County and Noxubee County.