Future
What to Expect on Election Day
A guide to what could happen, the stakes for companies and the economy, and how business leaders are preparing for the result — including potential unrest.
The polls show the race is deadlocked after a fraught campaign.Credit…Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
America goes to the polls
It’s Election Day. A third of voters have already cast their ballots in one of the most unconventional, expensive and tightest presidential campaigns in history.
Donald Trump steamrolled the Republican field to get the party nomination. Trailing in the polls, President Biden stepped aside in July. That set the stage for Vice President Kamala Harris, and the big money followed.
Typically outspoken business leaders stayed quiet, partly over worries about retribution if Trump wins (more on that below). In Silicon Valley, a left-right split burst into the open.
No tech tycoon was more present in this campaign than Elon Musk, who has used his money, his X account and public rallies to go all-in for Trump. What could be his reward? A role in a Trump government? A path to more government contracts?
One topic that has united many big-money donors to both candidates was an antipathy to the Biden administration’s tough approach to regulation. Some called openly for Lina Khan to be replaced as the F.T.C. chair.
You can follow The Times’s coverage here and below, DealBook outlines what you need to know today, and what to expect after the polls close.
