It’s the investor equivalent of announcing: “If that guy wins, I’m moving to Canada.” According to a recent survey by insurer Allianz Life, about 40% of voters aged 55 to 65 say that they plan to change their portfolios depending on who wins the election.
- Reuters
And as Encore contributor Catey Hill reports today, for most that change would mean reacting defensively in response to a win by the man they dislike. “Voters who identified themselves as Republicans or Democrats generally said they were likely to invest more conservatively if the opposing party won the White House,” she writes, adding that “many Republicans also said they would invest more aggressively if Mr. Romney won.”
The survey-takers don’t appear to have asked the older voters how much money they planned to reallocate. Here’s hoping the answer, for most, is “not much”; the closer you get to retirement age, the more disruptive a big change in your portfolio mix can be.
For that matter, here’s hoping that few voters feel badly enough about one or both of the Obomneys to actually emigrate to Canada after Nov. 6; after all, Canada’s immigration authorities give first priority for entry to skilled workers and professionals, and as both candidates agree, America really needs those.
