My entire 40+ years business career has been B2B. I’ve worked with thousands of businesses from small, to medium, to large.
The Small Business Administration says there are around 30.2 million small businesses in America — or were before the COVID-19 pandemic — with around 80% of those essentially self-employed with no employees. However, the other 20% employ nearly 50% of non-farm employment for a total of around 67% of U.S. employment by small businesses.
The Demographics for small business owners reads like the typical Republican voter demographic, older, white and male. In fact 78% are 40 years or older, 71% white and 73% male. I can say from my personal experience small business owners are usually pretty hard core Republicans. Politics usually doesn’t come up in my discussions but on occasion it has and my responses have elicited an “OMG you’re a Democrat”. That’s never been a problem because they need me more than I need them.
I could go on and on about how small businesses are the economic engine behind the U.S. economy like how they account for 97.6% of exporters and about 80% of new job growth but the crux of this article is about them as a Republican voting bloc and whether they’re being driven away from Republican support.
If they are a major Republican voting bloc — and I believe they are possibly the largest — why are they Republican voters? The best answer is Republican tax cuts, which if you’re feeling economic pressure as a small business person, lower taxes has a certain appeal but Republicans talk a good game about “Free Trade”, “Free Markets” and less regulation that also appeals to small business owners.
Never mind that “Free Trade” and “Free Markets” and less regulation are just talk they sound good to small business owners. While most small businesses are regulated by state and local regulations, not federal, they don’t seem to understand that distinction but then small business owners aren’t that well educated either.
About the only Republican accomplishments during Trump’s presidency has been federal judges, Wall Street and big business reform rollbacks and massive tax cuts for big business. Trump himself seems focused solely on Wall Street.
As the pandemic has unfolded and the resulting economic collapse who has had small businesses back? It certainly hasn’t been Republicans. Democrats fought for the small business PPE and expanding unemployment to include the self employed, which as noted is 80% of small businesses.
Democrats are also fighting for more focus on small business and workers in a “Phase 2” stimulus package. Republicans on the other hand have almost exclusively focused on the 3,800 publicly traded big businesses with $500 billion direct investment and $4.5 TRILLION coming from the FED.
Will the pain and neglect experienced by small businesses — many of which won’t be able to reopen — be remembered on election day? We can hope BUT Democrats need to hammer home which party has been on their side as well as the side of workers and which party has not.
Several prominent Republicans have made stupid statements that should be played back in their states and districts that indicate they don’t have anyone but the richest among us interests in mind.