How do we know that there will be an election?
Things are changing rapidly.
Because if there isn't then come January 3rd there will be no House of Representatives and the Senate will only be two-thirds its normal size. Chuck Schumer will be Senate Majority Leader and the Democrats will select the President Pro Temp. He or she will then become president on January 20. That what you want?
There will be an election, but as you note, we are currently at the mercy of the "Ughknown".
Re: markets - The markets are being driven in part by a sentiment of fear. When that changes, the markets will start to recover.
Fear is coming from many angles. Some elected leaders at the state and local level look fearful and I believe a lot of that is due to their temperament - when everything is humming along - no problem. When a big problem comes along, well, there's a problem. Re: Main Street - when businesses can open again and run in a semi-normal fashion.
Somewhat related, saw a post on HA that is being attributed to being made at Ace of Spades:
"When this is all over and the smoke clears, we will have plenty of time to find those who not only caused the panic, but took advantage of us and our fellow citizens when they were most in need. At that point we can raise the black flag and start slitting throats."