- In today’s CEO Daily: Democrats’ rout will change how leaders operate in Washington.
- The big leadership story: A new hire illustrates OpenAI’s push into defense work.
- The markets: U.S. stocks look set to rally as investors weigh the election results.
- Plus: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune.
Good morning. It’s official. While the final tally will take time to work out, the Democrats came charging back into Congress yesterday, winning back control of both the House and the Senate in the midterm elections. This was a vote on the state of the economy, but it was also a vote on the state of democracy.
Left or right, the strong turnout for the midterm elections is a testament to Americans’ faith in democracy. While donors poured a record $12 billion into midterm campaigns, $446 million of which came from Elon Musk alone, the most powerful currency in the country remains one vote per citizen. Democrat James Talarico won the Senate seat in Texas, where Musk spent about $200 million trying to defeat him. If anything, such excessive spending from the world’s richest man sparked a backlash and counter-campaign insisting Texas was not for sale.
On the economic front, it’s clear that policymakers need to now prioritize addressing the cost of living, from grocery and gas costs to housing and health care, not to mention that debt. The debate around AI and data centers is likely to become more intense. And on the governing front, voters have made it clear that they want a strong check on this president after two years of watching the legislative branch give him a free pass on everything from dismantling federal agencies and redirecting federal funds to waging war and imposing tariffs. What they don’t want: two years of bitter investigations and gridlock instead of getting things done.
Whatever happens next in Washington—or doesn’t happen, given the divided government—business leaders can take this moment to remind people that the strength of this country lies not just in free and fair markets but in free and fair elections. That will be especially important if political leaders try to stir up doubt about the legitimacy of the results, though President Trump said last night that he would accept the outcome.
Whether he’s true to his word is anybody’s guess. But gone are the days when wooing Trumpwas sufficient to get things done. Now, funding ballrooms, bearing gifts, and pouring praise on this president may be a liability. The president told voters to act as if his name was on the ballot, so they did. In many races where Trump personally campaigned and supported candidates, voters rejected his picks. They rejected the Ohio gubernatorial candidate who ran a repulsive ad exploiting the childhood trauma of his opponent. They rejected the billionaires trying to buy their hearts and votes. They rejected the gerrymandering that was supposed to produce reliable results.
Now, the challenge is to turn a protest vote into good policy. Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at [email protected]
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