Worried about this stock-market selloff? Relief may be coming after the midterms — no matter who wins.

Markets have had a turbulent stretch, and the headline offers a historical counterpoint rather than a forecast. The cited data point is specific: since 1950, the nine-month window between Election Day and the following June 30 has produced an average S&P 500 return of 15.5%. That framing suggests midterm elections can mark a pivot point for equities, with the period after the vote historically showing strength.

The implied mechanism is less about which party wins and more about resolution. Midterms remove a major source of uncertainty, and markets often respond to clarity itself. The claim that relief may arrive "no matter who wins" leans on that pattern, though averages across decades can mask wide variation from cycle to cycle.

What to watch: whether the historical average holds in this instance, and what else is driving returns — earnings, inflation, and interest-rate expectations matter as much as election timing. A long-run average is context, not a guarantee, and past performance does not ensure future results.