What Georgia's Senate Runoff Election Means For The Markets

Today's runoff election in Georgia between incumbent Democrat Senator Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker is expected to have a direct effect on the stock market.

For example, Republicans have indicated a plan to repeal President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which seeks to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 to 40% below 2005 levels. So far, the bill has been a major catalyst for solar stocks, such as Sunrun Inc RUN, Array Technologies Inc ARRY and First Solar Inc FSLR.

The bill is also considered a win for electric vehicle companies like Tesla Inc TSLA, ChargePoint Holdings Inc CHPT, Blink Charging Co BLNK and EVgo Inc EVGO.

See Also: Senators Sinema And Manchin's Grip On Biden Agenda Hangs In Balance As Georgia Vote Unfolds

But regardless of how Georgia's runoff turns out (neither Warnock nor Walker won the majority of the initial vote on Election Day, after Libertarian Chase Oliver, took 2.1% of the cast ballots), Democrats have already won the Senate majority. Two seats are held by independent senators — Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine — who caucus with Democrats.

A 50-50 Senate means Vice President Kamala Harris will be called upon to vote in the event of a tie whenever a piece of legislation is up for a vote.

Still, Georgia's voting outcome will help decide just how well the power dynamics of the U.S. Senate tilt in favor of Democratic priorities like climate change, voting rights, abortion access and the ability to confirm judicial nominations (118 federal judicial vacancies need to be filled).

A clear Senate majority for Democrats could also block bills approved by the House, which is under Republican control.

Next: Is Congressional Gridlock Good For Your Nest Egg? What A Divided Government Means For Personal Finances

Image via Unsplash: Warnock And Walker Press