Reflections
3 Simple Reasons Why For Stock Investors, It Doesn’t Matter Whether Biden or Trump Wins The Election in 2020
6 November 2020
Based on the current trend of the mail-in ballots, it seems likely that Biden is going to be the victor of the US election in 2020.
Maybe by the time you are reading this article, Biden is already projected to win in Pennsylvania or Nevada. With Nevada, being the likelier state that Biden is going to win.
Winning Nevada will give him the 6 points he needs to secure the 270 electoral votes to win.
As of the time of this writing, Trump and Biden are necks to neck in Georgia – with Trump leading by only about 0.01% with 99% of the votes counted.
And maybe Trump will even stage a comeback by winning Nevada, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia – although it is very unlikely at this point.
Regardless, here are 3 simple reasons I feel that for intelligent stock investors, it doesn’t matter who wins the US election in 2020:
1. The Primary Reason for Most Stock Outperformance is Business Results
As humans, we are naturally interested or keen on coming out with reasons why certain things are happening to the stocks we hold.
But if we think about it, at its very essence, if a business does well over time, the stocks will likely do well over time too – isn’t it?
Microsoft has done pretty well for itself in the past 30 years, no matter who was the president – democrats or republican.
Yes, there is survivorship bias involved. But the fact remains that if the company continues to innovate and produce great results, shareholders are bound to be rewarded over time.
2. The Business Cycles And External Circumstances Play A Bigger Part
“Bull markets and bear markets come and go, and it’s more to do with business cycles than presidents.” – Siegel, author of Stocks For The Long Run
Whoever wins the presidency, I believe that what happens to the economy will never come from just one factor.
The business cycles and external factors play a bigger part.
For example, yes Trump had made corporates in America richer with the tax cuts he did in his Presidency. But the virus is beyond Trump’s control when it first came, it is within his control though – on how he should have handled it.
But regardless, the point is that how the stock market will do – and how our investments will pan out – is likely more of a factor of how we behave, that who is the president.
See also: The Intelligent Investor Summary (Ultimate Guide) | Re-ThinkWealth
And if we think about it, the companies we choose and the price we pay for the stocks plays an even bigger part.
3. Whoever Wins, At Least We Know Who Wins
The stock market hates uncertainties.
They love certainty.
Whoever wins, be it, Trump or Biden, at least we know who is the next US president. And also importantly, who will be controlling the Senate and the House.
As of now, it seems like the Republicans will still control the Senate and Biden will be the President. Let’s see what happens but regardless, when there is more certainty, the market tends to do better.
Look back in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic has just begun, the stock market crashed due to massive uncertainties about the impact of the virus.
Moving forward now to almost the end of the year, the pandemic is not yet under full control but because we now know more about the virus than we did back in March, the stock market has recovered all of its losses and gained further.
Also read: 8 Value Investing Lessons From Beating The S&P 500 Return So Far
In Conclusion
Yes, we can analyze the past and see how the stock market does under past presidents.
In fact, Forbes has a comprehensive article about how the stock market performed under every US president since Truman here.
In general, the stock market does better under democrats based on the past.
But the past does not equal the future.
One thing we know now is that we are on a path to recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and with a stimulus and vaccines in sight, business’s earnings are likely going to do better (of course, depending on what we have in our portfolio).
And with little alternative to equities in the current low-interest-rate environment, the market has the appetite to take on more risks with equities.
So regardless of whether Trump or Biden wins, the stock market will likely do fine – if we invest in the right companies at the right prices.
See also: The Ultimate List of Investment and Finance Blogs/Websites in Singapore
Was this article useful for you?
If it is, appreciate it if you could take one minute to share the above article on Facebook by clicking here.
Disclaimer:
The information provided is for educational and general information purposes only and is not intended to be personalized investment or financial advice. We make no promises as to the accuracy or usefulness of the information we present.
Important: Please read our full disclaimer.

Chris Lee Susanto
More from Chris
My Week 5 Summary of Yale University Financial Markets Course: Derivatives, Futures, Forwards and Options Market
Introduction to Derivatives, Futures, Forwards, and Options market from Professor Robert Shiller The derivatives market is a market for securities with a price that is dependent upon or derived from one or more underlying assets. Examples of Derivates market are...
My Week 4 Summary of Yale University Financial Markets Course part 2: Regulations of Companies
Introduction to Regulation and Enterprise from Professor Robert Shiller Regulatory bodies US government set up Picture source: Google In 1968, the US government set up Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie May) and in 1970, the US government set up Federal...
My Week 4 Summary of Yale University Financial Markets Course part 1: Real Estate
Introduction to Real Estate from Professor Robert Shiller Picture source: Google Real Estate is one of the most important classes of asset in the world and it is generally privately held in most countries. With the exception of China, whereby the government...
Keryx Biopharmaceuticals could be an Interesting Biotech Stock Play
Keryx Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: KERX) is essentially a bio-pharmaceutical company focused on the research, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products geared towards patients with kidney disease and their healthcare providers. High volatility c...
Do You Know What Is Private Equity?
Differences Between Public Firm And Private Firm In Terms Of Buying Of Their Equity Stake "Equity" is another word that means the same as "stock"- which means that when you own it, you are owning a percentage of the company (the percentage of how much of the company...
4 Secrets For Thinking Positively
Humans are emotional creatures and most of the time, we cannot control our emotions when we feel sad or happy. However, we can train our mind to think good thoughts. When we control what we think, we can control what we feel. Think with the end in mind - Amidst the...
My Week 3 Summary of Yale University Financial Markets Course: Theory of Debt
In this module, Professor Shiller discusses the theory of debt and its proper role. He also covers corporate stocks. A naïve view of what stocks are is that it is some certificate that people buy so that the price can go up. That is not what stocks are. Stocks...
The Federal Reserve Raises Interest Rate: What Does It Mean For Us?
After almost a decade, The Federal Reserve raises a higher interest rate for the first time. The Federal Open Market Committee unanimously voted to set the new target range for the federal funds rate at 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent, up from zero to 0.25 percent. Policy...
Will The Fed Finally Raise Interest Rate on 16 Dec 2015?
The expectation was based on Chair Janet Yellen's oft-repeated stance that she'd like to see rate rises before the end of 2015. The last time the United States Federal Reserve raised their interest rates was back in 2006, a decade ago. With shares and commodity...
Here Is Everything You Need To Know About The Singapore Savings Bonds
What Are Bonds Bonds are one of the methods for corporations and governments to raise funds. It is a form of borrowing whereby we lend money to the government or corporations and we earn interest on it. We are able to redeem the principal amount but normally there is...
Seven Steps For Starting A Conversation
The seven steps for starting a conversation at a party Give a sincere smile and say Hello Provide a short introduction of who you are and give a firm handshake Listen closely to the person's name - Ask them to repeat it if you did not hear it clearly the first time...
My Week 2 Summary of Yale University Financial Markets Course: The History and Real Impact of Behavioral Finance
The History and The Real Impact of Behavioural Finance People are complex and our financial institutions are designed for real people. This study of behavioural finance started because of the revolution of neuroscience and the fact that the human brain is a...







