Restaurants will likely be more affected by the state elections that conclude a month from now than they will be by who’s voted into the White House, according to the political veterans who co-host the Working Lunch podcast. But that, they acknowledge, doesn’t make the outcomes any easier to predict.
Operators in Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire could see a shift in control of their state legislatures or governor’s office, with significant repercussions for business, observed Franklin Coley, co-host of the podcast and a partner in Orlando’s Align Public Strategies consulting and lobbying group.
“We could have a totally new political environment in those states,” said Coley. “That’s what operators should be paying closest attention to.”
It could prove essential, added his business partner and podcast colleague, Joe Kefauver. Races in those battleground areas could be decided “by a few thousand votes,” he said, suggesting the industry could tip the balance.
Handicapping those races is difficult because the polling to date has been far from conclusive, Kefauver asserted. Many have shown a virtual dead heat between the two main political parties in those battleground areas. Plus, he continued, his gut tells him that pollsters may not be catching the full sentiments of Democrats, just as they missed the true preferences of Republicans in bygone elections. He suggested the snapshots pouring out of research firms could be significantly off.
What restaurant-relevant issues could be put in play by the outcome of those state elections? Press Play for a sampling.
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