[3] The county was named for the Wicomico River, which in turn derives its name from the Algonquian language words wicko mekee, meaning "a place where houses are built," apparently referring to a Native American town on the banks.

[4] In the period after the Reconstruction era, Wicomico County became solidly Democratic due to its strong support for secession and state efforts to disenfranchise most blacks by raising barriers to voter registration.

Independent insurgent white groups worked to intimidate and discourage black voters, especially in rural areas.

Eisenhower would again carry Wicomico in 1956, and Republican Richard Nixon would win it in 1960 against John F. Kennedy who, like Al Smith, was Catholic.

No Democratic presidential nominee has won Wicomico County since Lyndon Johnson’s landslide in 1964, as white conservatives increasingly moved into the Republican Party.

In 2020, Joe Biden came extremely close to winning the county, with Donald Trump only edging him out by 890 votes.

Prior to 2006, the county operated under a council-administrator system where voters elected council members who in turn appointed an administrator to oversee the government.

If approved, the measure would go into effect at the conclusion of Julie Giordano's current term in late 2026.

[21] Municipal police agencies exist in the towns of Delmar and Pittsville, along with the cities of Fruitland and Salisbury.

The midpoint is located about 8 miles (13 km) northwest of Salisbury, near the center of the Delmarva Peninsula.

According to the Trewartha climate classification, the subtropical boundary of eight months of daily averages of at least 50 °F (10 °C) runs through the northern part of Wicomico County.

[38] Other major employers in the county include Salisbury University, Verizon, Peninsula Regional Medical Center, The Knowland Group, Cadista Pharmaceuticals, Chesapeake Shipbuilding, Dove Pointe, and Pepsi Bottling of Delmarva.

Other industries in Wicomico County include electronic component manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, shipbuilding, and agriculture.

These flights are run by American Eagle to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Charlotte, North Carolina.

Until 1957 the Pennsylvania railroad operated the Del-Mar-Va Express train from Cape Charles, Virginia, through Salisbury Union Station to Philadelphia.

[39] Salisbury is the focus city of a larger Delmarva television market, which includes Dover and the northern Eastern Shore of Virginia.

Most of the market's major-network affiliates are based in Salisbury, including WBOC-TV (CBS, Telemundo, NBC, and Fox), WMDT (ABC and The CW), and Maryland Public Television station WCPB (PBS).