The fallout from Tuesday’s midterm election began almost immediately for businesses concerned about trade. Peacock Tariff Consulting in Orillia, Ont., saw a surge in calls from clients across Simcoe County looking to understand how the election results could affect tariffs and their bottom line. Kyle Peacock, the company principal at the firm, has been hesitant to call the results a win for local businesses. “Our phones have been ringing off the hook and mostly advising what to do next,” said Peacock. “Unfortunately, this does not mean that the change happens overnight.” Canada and the U.S. have been gridlocked in trade talks for months, with U.S. President Donald Trump placing tariffs on Canadian goods, impacting the economy. The Democrats gained significant momentum after the election results and flipped long-held Republican Senate seats in Texas, Maine and South Carolina. Despite control shifting in the south, Peacock tells local businesses to remain patient and see what Trump does next. “We are seeing that there may be some reaction to what has come out of the election, and it may be additional tariffs in the short term; it may be executive orders,” said Peacock. “There’s a lot of uncertainty about what shoe will drop next from the U.S. administration in the White House.” Here’s what locals had to say about it As businesses prepare for what is next, CTV News took to the streets to find out what people had to say about the election results. “Ecstatic, it’s wonderful; it was a little bit overwhelming,” said Barrie resident John Carter. “I didn’t expect to be quite that strong, but we’ll find out now what happens with Mr. T.” Dual citizen Kevin Gangloff knows the results will not change what is happening today but was happy with the outcome. “Just not feasible to keep going in this direction. I know this isn’t going to fix everything; there’s still going to be a battle, but at least this is a positive step,” said Gangloff. Gangloff has immediate family in the U.S., and he added that the change of power in the Senate and Congress will hopefully add some balance for Americans. “At the end of the day, our governments are supposed to work for us to support us, and we’re not always going to get what we want, no matter what our political leanings are,” said Gangloff. “But at this point, there have been no checks on what’s happened in the U.S., and it’s everyone who is feeling it, not just in the U.S. (but) across the planet.” Elected officials will take office in January, the same time that auto tariffs are expected to be placed on Canada.
