| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | R | 927 | 2,889 | 3,901 | |
| 2020 | R | 1,047 | 2,895 | 4,009 | |
| 2016 | R | 928 | 2,496 | 3,675 | |
| 2012 | R | 1,303 | 2,182 | 3,591 | |
| 2008 | R | 1,548 | 2,011 | 3,641 | |
| 2004 | R | 1,573 | 2,295 | 3,918 | |
| 2000 | R | 1,392 | 1,970 | 3,467 | |
| 1996 | D | 1,796 | 1,242 | 3,481 | |
| 1992 | D | 1,741 | 1,401 | 3,781 | |
| 1988 | D | 1,958 | 1,876 | 3,852 | |
| 1984 | R | 1,903 | 2,479 | 4,386 | |
| 1980 | D | 2,170 | 2,011 | 4,355 | |
| 1976 | D | 2,330 | 1,740 | 4,070 | |
| 1972 | R | 1,635 | 2,391 | 4,026 | |
| 1968 | R | 1,948 | 2,040 | 4,434 | |
| 1964 | D | 3,317 | 1,716 | 5,033 | |
| 1960 | D | 2,822 | 2,469 | 5,291 | |
| 1956 | R | 2,533 | 2,937 | 5,470 | |
| 1952 | R | 2,743 | 2,841 | 5,584 | |
| 1948 | D | 2,754 | 2,373 | 5,132 | |
| 1944 | D | 2,897 | 2,340 | 5,237 | |
| 1940 | D | 3,604 | 2,886 | 6,490 | |
| 1936 | D | 4,118 | 2,850 | 6,978 | |
| 1932 | D | 3,531 | 2,623 | 6,195 | |
| 1928 | R | 2,487 | 3,141 | 5,654 | |
| 1924 | R | 2,777 | 2,782 | 5,661 | |
| 1920 | R | 2,540 | 2,836 | 5,421 | |
| 1916 | D | 1,849 | 1,550 | 3,452 | |
| 1912 | D | 1,428 | 589 | 3,197 | |
| 1908 | R | 1,300 | 1,687 | 3,068 | |
| 1904 | R | 1,130 | 1,167 | 2,348 | |
| 1900 | R | 793 | 1,000 | 1,793 | |
| 1896 | D | 983 | 632 | 1,625 | |
| 1892 | D | 950 | 539 | 1,506 | |
| 1888 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1884 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1876 | — | — | — | — |
Pocahontas County sits along the Allegheny Highlands, its sparse population spread across one of West Virginia's largest land areas. Presidential margins here have shifted roughly 40 points toward Republicans over the past two decades, tracking the state's broader rural realignment.
The Democratic margin in Pocahontas County peaked at thirty-two points in 1964. By 2000 the county had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was fifty points, the most Republican-leaning result in the county's modern history.
The economic context is the key. Pocahontas County's median household income of $42,119 sits well below state and national norms, and 23% 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 Divide County and Gilmer County.