“It’s the economy, stupid.”
That maxim is as true today as it was in 1992 when political commentator and former Bill Clinton campaign strategist James Carville said it on television.
U.S. voters’ primary concern in 2024 was the economy, with 9 out of 10 voters listing that issue as a significant factor in their election decisions, according to Gallup surveys.
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Donald Trump rode to a second term in the White House on the sentiment of the 54% of Americans who believed that he was best suited to tamp down inflation and turn the economy around.
Not only were the majority of voters most concerned with the economy, but their level of concern was collectively the highest since the Great Recession of 2008.
More than half rated the economy as an “extremely important” influence on their vote for president.
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But now that the election is over; consumers don’t seem to have forgotten about the power of economic pressure.
The Target store in Everett, Mass. The chain was one of the targets of calls for a shopping boycott to protest major companies rolling back diversity pledges. (Photo by Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Shoppers vote with their wallets in ‘Economic Blackout’
On Friday, Feb. 28, shoppers nationwide participated in an “economic blackout,” a boycott targeting major retailers like Target (TGT) , Amazon (AMZN) and Walmart (WMT) .
The group behind the boycott, The Peoples Union USA, says on its website that it’s unaffiliated with any political party. “We fight for fairness, economic justice, and real systemic change, something neither party has prioritized,” it says.
“Right now, the only way we can really exercise our voice is economically,” Sean Washington, a 52-year-old from Battle Creek, Mich., who was participating in the boycott, told the Detroit Free Press.
“So we still want to support our small businesses, but we’re laying off of the corporate stores just to send that message. … It’s just making sure that we’re supporting local business and not the same people that are currently ravaging our government.”
Some boycotters targeted big retailers, while others called for a general spending blackout, where consumers buy nothing from everyone.
The big box retailers being targeted now were all big proponents of diversity-equity-inclusion and its benefits during the Joe Biden administration. But they’ve reneged on their commitments to DEI under pressure from President Donald Trump.
Trump has made his anti-DEI feelings clear, signing a series of executive orders terminating DEI programs in the federal government, ending equity-related grants and contracts, and directing federal agencies to contractually obligate federal contractors to certify that they are anti-DEI before receiving any government funds.
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In such an environment, many companies have given up their DEI programs as the very term has become increasingly politically charged.
The fallout from the first ‘Economic Blackout’ of 2025
According to a recent Forbes article, the boycott failed. Early data from analytics firm Momentum Commerce showed that Amazon’s transactions rose 1% compared with a typical Friday.
Related: Walmart, Amazon face massive boycott threat
Some people declared the protest a failure before the returns were even in.
Political television host Bill Maher lambasted the blackout on his show, “Real Time with Bill Maher,” on Friday night before the boycott was over.
“And what it is is you refrain from making any purchases, either in stores or online, to shun fast food, getting gas — for a full day! I know! That look on your face says it all! You’re right, it’s so f—— stupid!” Maher said.
By their nature, boycotts take time to have an effect, so it’s impossible to tell whether Friday’s action will eventually bring changes at those retailers.
Despite Maher’s jabs, more boycotts are scheduled in March and beyond. Plus the successful boycott of Bud Light by conservative consumers in 2023 shows just how powerful the purse can be.
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