How Congress-Tracking ETFs Reacted to the Market Drawdown

The performance gap between ETFs tracking Democratic and Republican congressional trading has widened this quarter amid recent market turbulence, with the Unusual Whales Subversive Democratic Trading ETF (NANC) seeing stronger flows despite weaker returns compared to its GOP counterpart.

NANC has underperformed the Unusual Whales Subversive Republican Trading ETF (KRUZ) by more than 10 percentage points during the three-month period, according to etf.com data. While NANC is down 10.5% over three months, KRUZ has nearly broken even with just a 0.2% decline during the same period.

Investors Gravitate to NANC Over KRUZ

Despite this performance gap, investors continue showing stronger interest in NANC, which has attracted $14.1 million in net inflows over three months compared to $9.8 million for KRUZ, according to etf.com data. The Democratic-aligned fund also maintains a larger asset base at $195.8 million versus $53.9 million for the Republican-focused ETF.

These congressional-trading ETFs have gained attention as they offer retail investors exposure to portfolios resembling those of elected officials, raising important questions about potential conflicts of interest when lawmakers with advance knowledge of legislation make market transactions that could benefit from their policy decisions.

Source: etf.com ETF Comparison Tool

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Congressional Trading Activity Intensifies

The performance divergence comes amid heightened market volatility triggered by White House tariff actions. On April 2, President Donald Trump announced a tariff increase that sent markets plunging, though they subsequently rebounded after he announced a 90-day pause on most tariffs.

During this period of volatility, recent stock trading by lawmakers has drawn renewed attention to congressional investment practices. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) made headlines last week when she purchased shares in Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN), Tesla Inc. (TSLA) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) just before the tariff pause announcement, according to People.com reporting. Greene has attributed these trades to her financial advisor and denied any wrongdoing.

The scrutiny of congressional trading gained momentum following the notoriety of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) stock-trading success in recent years. Trades by legislators from both parties have fueled debate about potential conflicts of interest when lawmakers with access to privileged information make investment decisions

These high-profile trading activities highlight the investment strategies reflected in both congressional ETFs. Looking at their underlying holdings reveals distinct investment patterns along party lines.

NANC's top holdings are tech-heavy, with Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) (8.9%), Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) (8%) and AMZN (5.2%) leading the portfolio, according to etf.com data. KRUZ shows more balanced sector allocation with JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) (4.3%), AT&T Inc. (T) (2.9%) and Comfort Systems USA Inc. (FIX) (2.9%) as its largest positions.

The recent trading activity has rekindled reform efforts. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has advocated for a complete ban on congressional stock trading to restore public trust, while Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has expressed concern about potential conflicts of interest, warning that Americans shouldn't have to question whether lawmakers are making decisions for personal financial gain.