U.S. Politics and Markets

How much do elections impact the stock market and investment portfolio returns? Should elections even matter to long-term investors in the first place? These are common questions investors are facing as we approach the upcoming U.S. election on  November 5.

Summarizing the last 90 years of election and market data provides us with some interesting insight into what really matters to investors.

• Markets have trended higher regardless of which party wins the election

• Elections have, historically speaking, made almost no difference when it comes to long-term investment returns.

• Which party is in power hasn’t made a meaningful difference to stocks either.

• Since 1933, there have been eight Democratic and seven Republican presidents, and the general direction of the market has always been up over the long term.

• What matters more to investors than election results is staying invested and continuing to invest.