With only a few weeks before the election, Vice President Kamala Harris and Former President Donald Trump are near neck and neck in the polls. As voters battle with our current cost-of-living crisis, the defining issue for both campaigns is proving to be the economy. In recent Georgia polling, Harris was only four points from Trump on the issue. Across swing states, Harris performed similarly. To win voters’ support for this critical issue, campaigns need to double down on the Obama-era policies that empowered Black entrepreneurship and move away from recent regulatory actions that could limit Black business growth.
Historically, the Black community has been the backbone of transformative political movements in the United States. From the civil rights movement to the recent push for police reform, Black Americans have consistently demonstrated their capacity to enact change through organized, strategic action. In Georgia, Black businesses are uniquely positioned to help advance candidates that will create equitable economic opportunities.
Credit: PPOSEY N2P
Credit: PPOSEY N2P
Harris has made monumental strides with Black voters. A recent Howard University Initiative on Public Opinion poll of likely Black voters in Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin found that more than 80% said they would vote for Harris. The respondents who said they would likely vote for Trump cited his economic stances as the top reason for their support. Securing the votes of Black business leaders in Georgia and across the country will come down to which candidate can prove he or she supports the small businesses that form the backbone of our economy.
Even with her strong support among Black voters, this might prove a challenge for the Harris campaign. The Democratic Party has historically battled an outdated narrative that it is less friendly to business. The Obama administration faced the same issues, fighting against attempts to paint the president as antibusiness despite clear evidence to the contrary. President Barack Obama overcame this balancing regulatory enforcement with support for strong business infrastructure that helps to uplift Black communities. Harris should follow his lesson.
In recent years, regulators at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division have taken a new approach to enforcement that lowers the standards for mergers to be considered anticompetitive across the board. Their attempts to block monopolies have been praised — but there are hidden costs to limiting deal activity.
Though regulators are primarily focused on blocking deal activity among large companies, many are losing sight of the downstream impacts these enforcement actions will have on small and Black-owned businesses.
Large companies don’t depend on deal activity the way that smaller businesses do. According to a 2020 survey, 58% of American founders hope to sell their companies. They are “building to sell” and looking for the economic security that a merger can create. In particular, Black businesses depend on these opportunities and transformative public policy to help close the racial wealth gap. Data from the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finance paints a stark picture of economic disparity. Despite progress in some areas, Black households and businesses lag far behind their white counterparts in wealth accumulation and access to capital.
Comprehensive economic policies that promote inclusion and equity are essential — for whichever candidate ends up in office. If Harris wants to prevail, she can’t afford to miss opportunities to show the benefits of her Opportunity Economy agenda. Protecting Black businesses against the unintended consequences of current antitrust enforcement is an untapped opportunity that could decide the presidency.
Markee Tate is the chair of the Board of the Atlanta Black Chambers Inc. and president of Advancing Black Businesses Inc.
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