Don't Get Political

This will be my first and last political related post heading into the November elections. I frankly do an eye-roll every time it's brought up, because the evidence is so overwhelming as to how little these things matter towards how one should invest. 

This will be my 5th presidential election since I've been in the business. I've had people confidently explain to me why the market will crash under a President Obama, then a President Trump, and then finally, a President Biden. Never happened. And that's because the President can only impact markets at the margins. Global markets are far too big, complex and interdependent for it to matter more than that. Sorry.

The chart below from Bespoke is the best illustration I can remember seeing which confirms that messaging. Being political with your portfolio over a lifetime has cost a devastating amount of wealth. $1k invested at the start of the Eisenhower administration would be worth ~ $1.7m today, simply by staying invested. That number is reduced to ~ $27k only investing during a Republican administration, and ~ $62k only investing during a Democratic administration. Democrats held the White House for a longer period of time since 1953, which represents the discrepancy in those numbers. More time, more compounding. 

There is nothing left to say here. The chart speaks for itself.

^{Source: Bespoke, The Compound and Friends}

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^{The content in this article was prepared by the article’s author and is not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. Voya Financial Advisors does not endorse its content, and the views expressed may not necessarily reflect those held by Voya Financial Advisors.}