The Threat to Democracy and Our Economy
Record numbers of voters turned out in 2020. But instead of celebrating a win for American democracy, states across the country are passing laws that make it harder to vote and easier to overturn election results, including:
New restrictions on mail-in voting and reduced polling locations and voting hours
Measures giving partisan lawmakers the authority to reject election results they don’t like
Measures intended to intimidate non-partisan election officials by criminalizing mistakes or creating new civil penalties
Redrawing congressional maps to significantly advantage one political party over another
These voter and election suppression laws threaten our freedom — and our economy.
Our open economy and markets are the envy of the world – precisely because they are backed by the rule of law and a stable political system. That is why the U.S. dollar remains the world’s reserve currency.
CEOs, their boards, and investors rely on the bedrock stability of a functioning American democracy to generate American jobs and wealth. In fact, a new study finds that an overwhelming 85 percent of business leaders believe that capitalism in the United States depends upon a well-functioning democracy.
Research has found that higher rates of voter participation lead to healthier stock market returns, while low voter turnout can shrink the middle class and paralyze economic growth.