The 21^st Century has been different than previous periods in American history in at least one prominent regard: the constant drum of political rhetoric.

It seems since the controversial election of George W. Bush in 2000 that politics has been a constant strain upon the American psyche, and it has only gotten worse since the election of Donald Trump in 2016. The campaign for the 2020 presidential election seemed to start the day the 2016 election ended, and talk about the upcoming election has ramped up daily in 2020.

There is a reason for that, beyond the constant attention from social media and all-day news television stations. There is a strong belief that the future of the American economy hinges on the outcome of the 2020 election.

Defenders of President Trump believe his reelection will spur further economic growth, and that the election of a Democratic president will kill the American economy. The opposing view is that the election of a Democratic candidate will move the American economy away from a corporate bottom-line attitude and more toward an economic atmosphere of growth for middle- and lower-class citizens.

With those prospects in mind, it is fair to believe investors are wondering just what they should be doing with their investments in anticipation of whatever is going to happen come November.

Spectrem’s year-long survey of investors about political and election questions – Tracking the 2020 Election – asked investors how much they believe the upcoming election will impact their investment portfolio. A majority of investors (57 percent) believe there will be least some impact as a result of the election, and 13 percent believe the impact will be significant.

That being the case, it makes sense that those investors would want to discuss the potential personal financial impact of the election with their advisor, and they do.

Twenty-eight percent of investors said they want to communicate more with their advisor to discuss the ramifications of the upcoming election. That included 4 percent who want to talk to their advisor much more frequently to remain abreast of the potential impact upon their portfolio from the upcoming presidential selection.

The point is that your clients are listening to the election conversation just like everyone else, but they are doing so with an eye toward their own economic future. There are many unknowns which still remain in the election process, and they likely want to know what you know to remove some of those unknowns.

 

 

©2020 Spectrem Group

 

 

Keywords: election, portfolio, investors, advisors, Spectrem, Trump, Democrats