Do Presidential Elections Affect Boat Sales?

The 2020 general election is right around the corner. No matter who’s running, election years are pivotal to businesses, markets, and individuals. You probably care about your money, the stability of the markets, and the security of your job, right?

These concerns are linked to the economy and your purchasing behavior — but more so during election years. That’s because, historically speaking, Americans usually choose to vote for the same candidate or party if the economy is up, according to Forbes. When times are tough, people demand change.

We understand that 2020 has been an unusual year with COVID-19, which has factored into peoples’ purchasing behaviors ( 75% more women are shopping for boats during the pandemic). But we’re specifically curious about whether presidential elections have any influence on boat sales.

For this analysis, we combined the data on every Denison boat bigger than sold by brokers in the United States from 2000 to 2019 and separated the election years (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) from the non-election years. The graph below shows the average number of boats sold by Denison Yachting from October to December. The orange bar represents non-election years, while the blue bar represents election years.

The average number of boat sales during election years is slightly lower than in other years, on average by 5% among all sold boats. The results reflect our expectations. Elections bring an additional factor of uncertainty, which is critical for investments and big purchases. Markets typically respond better to elections whose outcomes are more predictable, reports Forbes.

There are plenty of other factors that influence boat sales, including market indexes, real estate, corporate profits, and, of course, the coronavirus. But our research shows that presidential elections are an additional factor to be considered when analyzing the market and creating forecasts. No matter what, go out and vote. Contact Denison Yacht Sales to learn more about factors to consider when purchasing a yacht or boat.