In the wake of the 2024 election, voters' frustration over rising costs and distrust of elites have fueled a political power shift in Washington. In his latest piece for PR News, Narrative CEO and Founding Partner Ken Spain explores how companies can mitigate risk, adapt to new dynamics, and build brand capital.
President Donald Trump opened his second term in office with sweeping executive orders reflecting the political dynamics that shaped the 2024 election and will govern the early days of his administration. That policy agenda reflected a years-long frustration from voters, built on the belief that those in charge have looked out for themselves at the expense of everyone else.
This frustration is not limited to Washington. Businesses are operating in the same environment that drove major shifts across most voting demographics in 2024. Some business leaders have already begun to build corporate war rooms to prepare for major changes to tax, immigration, trade, and energy policy.
But businesses can’t simply react to these dynamics—they must internalize them. If they fail to learn the lessons of the 2024 elections and the dynamics that catalyzed a major shift in power in Washington, they will be vulnerable to the same forces.
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Voter Sentiment: Prior to the election, Narrative Strategies conducted a deep dive into voter sentiment and how it could affect public policy in 2025 and beyond. Our national voter survey, conducted by two trusted polling firms representing both sides of the political spectrum, tapped into the frustrations that came to the forefront as ballots were being tallied. The data compiled by UpOne Insights and Impact Research previewed two pillars of voter sentiment that proved to be pivotal in November: frustration with rising costs and an overwhelming distrust of elites.
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Reputation Management & Communications: Businesses hoping to survive this dynamic can’t simply lay low and hope that it passes. Instead, they will have to outflank it. Cookie-cutter approaches to reputation management and communicating with consumers simply won’t suffice. The growing frustration among Americans requires big businesses to differentiate themselves from their industries at large, which are broadly viewed negatively by the public.
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The First Mover Effect: Not everything about this environment is dire. New challenges also create new opportunities. Companies looking to enhance their reputations with political stakeholders or advance policy goals stand to gain from the first-mover effect. With Congress slated to consider a host of measures that could profoundly impact businesses in 2025—ranging from taxes to trade to artificial intelligence—it’s more important than ever that business leaders leverage a trusted army of authentic stakeholders and validators.
Big business might not have been on the ballot in November, but the same political forces that drove those results will also drive critical outcomes for corporate America. Business leaders must understand that they are operating in an environment that is closely tied to voter sentiment, hyper-partisanship and rejection of those in power.
Voters have made their feelings about elite institutions clear. Unless they wish to be swept away by the shifting tide of American politics, businesses must respond accordingly.
To discover more about Narrative’s approach to public affairs and advocacy, contact us at info@narrativestrategies.com.
