CEOs and companies are worried about the possibility of election unrest — read what they're saying

• Ahead of the election, CEOs and companies ranging from tech to telecommunications have talked about the possibility of civil unrest.
• "I'm worried that with our nation so divided and election results potentially taking days or weeks to be finalized, there is a risk of civil unrest across the country," Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, said on Thursday.
• PayPal issued broader guidance due to uncertainty, and its CEO cited "potential social unrest" among other factors making it more difficult than usual to predict the road ahead.
• With election day finally here, many businesses have boarded up windows in an effort to protect against any protest-related damage.

Ahead of Tuesday's election, CEOs and companies from AT&T to Facebook are grappling with the possibility of civil unrest in the US that could affect their businesses.

"I'm worried that with our nation so divided and election results potentially taking days or weeks to be finalized, there is a risk of civil unrest across the country," Zuckerberg said on Thursday.

The election, and the uncertainty around what the outcome will look, like has led to statements from some of the CEOs of America's largest companies. Just over a third of S&P 500 companies mentioned the election during their third quarter earnings calls, The New York Times' DealBook newsletter reported, citing a FactSet analysis.

And while Biden's proposed corporate tax hike and the possibility of another stimulus package remain hot topics in the corporate world, another concern has bloomed: the possibility of civil unrest, regardless of the winning presidential candidate.

For PayPal CEO Dan Schulman, the possibility of civil unrest adds to existing uncertainty for the digital payments company.

During the company's earnings call on Monday, Schulman told investors that while "virus numbers, lockdowns ... probably have the benefit of helping us as more people are at home, spending online," they must grapple with uncertainties such as, "what is consumer confidence is going to look like, what's the economy due to stimulus payments, what's the holiday shopping season going to look like, we've got an election coming up tomorrow, potential social unrest."

Amid the uncertainty, the company issued broader guidance to investors. The company said that revenue growth was now expected to fall between 20% to 21%, according to the company's third-quarter earnings report, a wider range than previously given.

"That wider range to us does nothing to take away from the strength we see in the business, but we thought it was the right thing to do," Schulman said in the call.

Meanwhile, CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed hope that Facebook could help quash violence and civil unrest by informing voters and moderating content on the platform.

"Companies like ours need to go well beyond what we've done before," Zuckerberg said in the company's third-quarter earnings call. "That's why we've taken additional steps to help people register to vote however they're comfortable, to clear up confusion about how this election will work, and reduce the chance of uncertainty and unrest."

Zuckerberg also pointed to the platform's decision to ban anti-vaccine advertisements, and content denying the Holocaust or propagating the popular conspiracy theory QAnon, as efforts to quell discord.

"To be clear, this is not a shift in our underlying philosophy or strong support of free expression. Instead, it's a reflection of the increased risk of violence and unrest, and an increased risk of harm associated with vaccine misinformation as we near an approved Covid vaccine," he said.

And the telecommunications giant AT&T issued a memo to employees on Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported, warning them that "potential exists for anti-government demonstrations and civil unrest." The company recommended safety measures such as staying away from protests and wearing badges that identified them as employees, according to the Journal.

In the past month, voices ranging from a former Facebook moderator to George Washington University have expressed concerns about the possibility of election-related violence. Gun sales jumped in October, with a 65% increase over October of 2019, according to a report from firearm research firm Small Arms Analytics. And businesses from Louis Vuitton to CVS have boarded up stores, concerned that election-related protests could lead to damage.

ServiceChannel, which provides a platform for building managers to connect with contractors, has been receiving inquiries about protecting businesses from election unrest since July, according to Forbes. So far, the company has seen invoices totalling $20 million related to damage and preparation related to civil unrest, Forbes reported.