8 Ways HNW Investors See Economy, Congress & Trump

By Janet Levaux

Slideshow November 05, 2018 at 04:13 PM

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The 2018 mid-term election takes place Tuesday, with the expectation that Democrats may take control of the House of Representatives but not the Senate. Democrats need 23 seats to flip the House, according to the Cook Political Report on Monday: "Democrats are substantial favorites for House control and could pick up anywhere from 20 to 40 seats."

In terms of a split Congress might make some investors happy, since then it would be tough for Democrats to overturn tax cuts, for instance.

According the NBC News/TargetSmart, about 35.5 million early votes have been cast as of Monday — well ahead of the 21 million-plus early votes cast in the 2014 midterm elections.

Within the states with early voting, 42% of voters are Republican, 41% are Democrats, and 17% are either independent or affiliated with another political party.

The latest Gallup poll reveals President Donald Trump's approval rating at 40%. Before the 2010 midterms, President Barack Obama had a 45% approval rating; President Bill Clinton's rating was 46% before the 1994 elections.

As for the markets, the S&P 500's 6.9% drop in October -- the worst return since September 2011 -- is on the minds of investors . And how are they feeling about economic issues and political momentum? UBS recently polled over 500 investors with $1 million of investable assets and up to find out. --- Related on ThinkAdvisor: