No Surprise: Small Business Says Economy No. 1 Issue

The state of the U.S. economy is having a major influence on small business owners’ attitudes towards the upcoming election, according to a new poll taken August 21-27 and released today by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and MetLife. Over half (57%) of small business owners rank the economy as the first or second most important issue influencing who they will vote for this November.

The survey also found that small business owners continue to view the economy as predominately negative. Most (78%) small business owners categorized the economy as “average,” “somewhat poor” or “very poor” in August. That marks an 8-point increase from July and a significant (40 point) shift since January 2020, when 38% said the same.¹

“The pandemic has had an uneven economic impact on industries and workers, many of whom are small business owners. It’s no wonder their driving issue for the upcoming election is the economy,” said Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We are now in a K-shaped recovery, where many small businesses face severe long-term challenges. We need our elected leaders to come together and provide targeted relief to the industries and small businesses who have been the most deeply impacted. Inaction is simply unacceptable.”

After the economy, small business owners cite taxes (27%), COVID-19 (25%), and healthcare (25%) as the most important 2020 election issues.

When it comes to political positions, 81% of small business owners report that the impact of a candidate’s policies on their business play a role in deciding which candidate to support. Nearly half (48%) say it plays a major factor in their decision. Additionally:

• Female small business owners are twice as likely to consider race issues/racial inequality as one of the top two important factors when considering which presidential candidate to vote for compared to their male counterparts (16% vs. 8%). 18% of minority business owners and 10% of non-minority small business owners said the same.

• Veteran owned small businesses are more likely to view education (25%) and immigration reform (19%) as important versus all small business owners (12% and 7%, respectively).

The majority (68%) of small business owners agree that it is more important for political leaders to compromise than stick to their beliefs in order to get things done. Overwhelmingly, small business owners (82%) believe partisan gridlock in the federal government is a serious problem.

Overall, three-quarters of small businesses (74%) are concerned about the impact that the coronavirus will have on their business. Yet, the number of small businesses reporting feeling “very” concerned about the virus’s impact has decreased more than 20 points since March to 35%.

Today, more small business owners think the recovery period will take longer than they originally anticipated when the pandemic began. In April, 46% of small business owners said it would take “six months to a year” for the U.S. business climate to get back to normal. Now more than half (55%) of small businesses say the same.