Lori Powell, President
Elevage Partners | November 2, 2026
“Am I going to be okay?”
I have heard that question often in recent years, sometimes asked directly, and I suspect many more people are asking it silently. This fall it comes with a follow-up: “Do I need to do anything differently?”
So let me take the questions one at a time, starting with the second.
Do I need to do anything differently?
For most people we work with, no. Here’s why.
The portfolios we manage were built around the lives they serve: for instance, a retirement date, a home, a grandchild’s education, work someone loves. A campaign season doesn’t override long-term goals and personal values, so Tuesday’s results, whatever they turn out to be, would not on their own be the reason we change a portfolio. When we do make a change, it is because something has changed about a business we own or about a client’s life. Election night is neither.
As a doctoral student, I read the research before I trust the headlines, and two peer-reviewed studies are worth knowing this week. The first, covering roughly 145 years of U.S. markets, found that stocks have tended to do better in the months after a midterm election, whichever party held the White House, as the uncertainty lifted. The second looked at how 49 industries did around midterm elections over nearly a century and found that, once risk was accounted for, none of them reliably beat the market. In other words, betting on which industries an election would favor didn’t pay. Read together, the two studies say the reward went to people who stayed invested through the uncertainty, not to people who tried to guess the outcome and move their money around it. The pattern holds across many elections. Any single election can go the other way.
Am I going to be okay?
I can’t promise what markets will do on Wednesday. Nobody can. What I can tell you is what “okay” rests on: a plan that starts with what the money is for, built to hold up through weeks like this one. We call that Investing for Your WHY®, and this is the kind of week it was made for. For clients who draw income, we recommend keeping six to 18 months of expenses set aside, so a bad day in the market doesn’t force anyone to sell. Where you fall in that range depends on your age and situation, and if you’re not sure, ask us.
There is also a part of our job that rarely gets said out loud. Trusting someone with your money means you get to put part of the worry down.
Yes, we build financial plans, and we actively watch the markets and every portfolio we manage. We also carry the weight of the markets and the plans, so the people we work with are free to give their full attention to the rest of their lives: a long-awaited dream vacation, an afternoon with the grandkids, the work project that could lead to a promotion, a favorite hobby, community volunteer time, or whatever they wish to prioritize in support of what matters most to them.
We know the people we work with well, because we built their plans together. What we may not know yet is the unexpected moment that arrives between conversations and changes things: a new goal, a move, a new family member, a change in employment. When something changes in your life, knowing about it helps us make sure your financial plan continues to reflect your life as it is today. You can always reach us at info@elevagepartners.com.
Tuesday’s results will tell us something important about the direction Americans want their government to take. Wednesday’s market reaction may tell us something about investors’ immediate expectations. Neither will tell us everything we need to know about the years ahead.
So watch as much of the election coverage as you like, or none at all. Whatever the results mean to you personally, we’ll be paying attention to the markets, your investments, and the plans that guide them.
And if you find yourself wondering, “Am I going to be okay?” remember that we’re just a call, text, or email away. You don’t have to work through that question alone.
Sources
Reuters, “US consumer sentiment near record low ahead of midterm elections,” October 23, 2026, via Kitco News. Election date.
FactSet, “S&P 500 Earnings Season Update: October 30,” October 30, 2026. Companies reporting this week.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Release Calendar: November 2026.” Jobs report date.
Chan and Marsh, Journal of Financial Economics, “Asset prices, midterm elections, and political uncertainty,” 2021. Stock returns after midterm elections.
Anderson, Białkowski and Wagner, Finance Research Letters, “Midterm elections and stock returns,” 2023. Industry returns around midterm elections.