As most of the nation either celebrated or mourned the result of the Nov. 5 presidential election, figures show that a majority of those living in Forest Park likely did the latter.  

Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins said that isn’t shocking.  

“Forest Park began trending Democratic in the early 2000s,” Hoskins said. A majority of the village has voted blue since.  

Data from this year’s election that the Cook County Clerk’s Office released Wednesday helps map the trend of Forest Park blueness. 

In Forest Park’s 11 Proviso Township precincts, the percentages of those who voted for the Democratic candidate in the last three elections are consistent, increasing slightly since 2016.  

This year, in all but one precinct, Kamala Harris received between 77% and 88% of residents’ vote.  

In 2020, United States President Joe Biden got between 79% and 88% of votes in every precinct. 

And in 2016, Hilary Clinton received 64% to 85% of the vote in all of the village’s precincts. 

In that one precinct this year, precinct 74 – just north of Roosevelt Road, encompassing the 1000 and 1100 blocks from Troost Avenue to Thomas Avenue – only 67% of voters cast a ballot for Harris. About 32% voted for President Elect Donald Trump, the highest percentage for him in the village.  

While Hoskins said it’s tough to know why that precinct skewed red this year without exit polling, perhaps those residents voted for the same party that they always do.  

“Maybe they’ve voted Republican traditionally,” Hoskins said about precinct 74. “There’s a lot of homeowners there who have lived there a long time.”  

In the 2016 election, the 76th precinct, between Roosevelt Road and Waldheim Cemetery, had the highest percentage of Trump votes. Nearly 64% of that precinct voted for Hilary Clinton to every other precinct’s 71% to 84%  

“It’s hard to say,” Hoskins said of why that area had more Republican voters in 2016, although he said he does know of residents in the 76th precinct who “are probably a little more to the right of me politically.”  

While many Forest Parkers won’t see their preferred candidate in office come January, this year’s election did turn up significantly more voters than past years. 

This election, between 420 and 906 people voted in every precinct, with the average being 790 voters. In 2016, that number was between 417 and 889, an average of 644 voters.  

Even with increased voter turnout in Forest Park, Hoskins said that presidential elections over the last few years have largely come down to name recognition and gender.  

“I think the name Trump is truly a household name in this country,” Hoskins said. “He’s defeated two female candidates, but he didn’t defeat an older white male candidate who also had a lifetime of experience in politics.”