This November, Opt to Vote For Your Household’s Wealth

This is the time of year when we are inundated with election ads asking for us to vote and donate to our preferred candidate or party. That got tired quickly. I hate ads and don’t understand why multi-millionaires need to spend an estimated $12 billion of 2024 campaign funds on marketing. This is up nearly 30% from the 2020 presidential election. Again, it’s not their own money.

To keep it brief, the last time I voted was in November 2012. After an odd racially charged interaction with a volunteer poll worker for the city of Tallahassee (FL), because I’m visibly Black with a Hispanic last name, I started to question why was I voting anyway. I didn’t know the policies. In the booth, besides the presidential candidates and by proxy their vice presidents, I didn’t know who the rest of these people were.

Ever since then, I’ve opted to vote for my household’s wealth instead of whoever is on the debate stage. The results have been extraordinary.

Why I’m Not Intoxicated by the Power of the Vote

Every election cycle, the Black community jumps into a frenzy where we fight amongst ourselves for months, only to vote +90% Democrat. At this rate, we may as well skip the theatrics. Ever since I was a child, Republicans are bad and Democrats are good. Yet, for all it’s worth I was poor under either party.

To be clear, this isn’t a plea for you to change your vote. That part was already decided for you. You will likely vote like your family, your community, along identity, and ultimately along party lines. In 2023, a record number of Americans “said” that they identify as Independent. For example, in 2020, White women acted like they had doubts, but voted for Trump anyway.

What are the key issues for 2024 anyway? The Economy + Jobs, Immigration, and Healthcare. Those are the same issues last time and the time before that. Are we trying to solve anything?

Polling numbers and who is voting where

In the 2016 race, the Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton received support from 41% of men and 54% of women. That same year, Republican candidate Trump was backed by 52% of men and 39% of women. He won. In 2020, White women backed Trump again at 55% vs 44% for Biden.

All the other women were team Biden. Black women have the highest rate of 90%, followed by Latinas at 69% and Asians at 58%.

Latino voters polled 65% Biden and 32% Trump. In contrast, Black voters overwhelmingly supported Biden in 2020 at 87%. Black people are carrying democracy on their backs. We even galvanize others to do the same thing.

How does this translate into material wealth improvements in America? Well not much. According to the 2020 Road to Wealth report by Prosperity Now and the Institute for Policy Studies, the median wealth of Black Americans could reach zero by 2053. The report also noted that Black communities are affected by a “negative net worth virus.” Even if individuals have advanced degrees, six-figure salaries, or executive titles, those individuals still have cancerous debts and liabilities.

Unfortunately, The Black Vote is Cheap

Since President Joe Biden was forced out of his reelection race, VP Kamala Harris raked in more than $300 million, grabbed the necessary delegate votes, and ‘turned up’ the volume on a floundering Democratic base. Black women are playing a major role in this rapid mobilization and continue to be the backbone of the Democrat party. However right outside there was another story.

According to a 2024 study compiled by the Institute on Race, Power & Political Economy at the New School, titled “The Color of Wealth in Chicago”, Black families in Chicago have a median net worth of zero dollars. 

This is compared to a median net worth of $210,000 for white families, $40,500 for Mexican-American families, $24,000 for Puerto Rican families, and $6,000 for foreign-born Mexican families. Black families have the lowest home-ownership rate in Chicago at 34%, compared to 72% for white households. This isn’t just true for Chicago.

New York State reported that the median white household net worth is $291,250 and the median Black household net worth is $31,370—a ratio of 9.3.

According to a January 2024 article from the Atlanta Civic Circle, the median wealth of a Black household in Atlanta is $5,180, while the median wealth of a White household is $238,355. This means that White households in Atlanta have 46 times more wealth than Black households, which is more extreme than the national average of 12.5 times.

A Sticker for a Stock Would be Better

Building Black wealth and helping Black families isn’t the same as voting for elections. See Table 1 (below). While there has been improvement in Black net worth over time through home ownership and an increase in investment into the market, Black wealth lags. In 2022, for every $100 in wealth held by white households, Black households held $15.

Election Year	Black Wealth Data Year	Black Net Worth	Growth Since the Prior Election	Percentage Change
2012	2013	$16,780	-$5,020	-23%
2016	2016	$27,970	+$11,190	+67%
2020	2022	$44,890	+$16,920	+60%

The median income and net worth of Black households hoover around $50,000 respectively. Black families are in a freefall. And I didn’t want to be another statistic.

My 1st Vote is for my Household’s Financial Well Being

After learning about health savings accounts during the 2016 election cycle, I committed myself to see if there was a difference if I chose personal finances over voting. And here are the results. In Table 2, I pulled my household’s records for our net worth and how it improved. We will be multi-millionaires by 2026, far outpacing our peers.

All because we started to account for our time, dollars, and opportunities. We started with a negative net worth in 2012 and made over $1 million since 2020. Our financial plan works and we don’t have to starve on red beans and rice even though it would be delicious.

Year	Assets (A) What We Own	Liabilities (L) What We Owe	Net Worth (A-L)	Growth Since the Prior Election	Percentage Change
2012	$0.00	$112,965	-$112,964	-$112,965	-100%
2016	$210,882	$260,116	-$49,234	+$63,730	+56%
2020	$738,180	$307,759	$430,421	+$479,655	+653%
Est. 2024	$1,802,653	$195,933	$1,606,720	+$1,176,299	+145%
Est. 2028	$3,676,361	$681,125	$2,995,236	+$1,388,516	+86%

While in Table 3 showcases just how our investments have done so far from a dollar perspective and percentage change.

Year	Total Investments	Growth/Losses Since the Prior Election	Percentage Change
2012	$0.00	+$0.00	+0%
2016	$55,886	+$55,886	+100%
2020	$335,006	+$279,120	+499%
Est. 2024	$1,003,502	+$668,496	+200%
Est. 2028	$1,995,000	+$991,498	+99%

So What Happens Next?

Again, this is not a plea to tell you not to vote. I don’t care about that. It’s your life, your money, and your time. Simply, I was tired of waiting for a policy change to materially help me along the way. The old vote and wait for change wasn’t working for me.

At this stage, I’m still striving to be financially free. Seeing the Seven Wonders of the World, becoming more adept with languages, setting up international trips for friends and family, and retiring early… I don’t think a president will help me do any of that. Besides, they are already rich themselves. Their kids go to the best schools. They don’t even shop for groceries. Politicians and social elites live four tiers ahead of the middle class. I’m just trying to carve out my family’s piece of the pie.

In the end, I’m just trying to be Obama-level wealthy. After that, I’ll show up every four years for family reunions and donate to ensure debts are paid off. Side note, if President Biden was deemed unfit to run and VP Harris is running a campaign; who is running the government?

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