Election Ushered in New Bull Market

The election cinched it. The more I think about it, the more I realize that the election, getting the election done, unleashed a tremendous amount of bullishness.

When we look back at this period, I believe we will decide that the bear market of 2000, which ended in 2003, didn't give way to a new bull market until after the election. We had some sort of bear-bull thing going after the trough, right before the war began, but nothing major happened when it comes to volume, price or mergers until after the election.

What's amazing to me, though, is how few people seem to recognize that the whole character of this market has changed for the better. Oil's down. Housing's up. Rates are now fine. Mergers and acquisitions are off the charts. Trading's up huge. Prices are terrific for all sectors, including drugs and financials.

Last night I had E*Trade's Mitch Caplan and Nasdaq's Bob Greifeld on "Kudlow & Cramer." They said the same thing: This market's just a different one since the election occurred.

If I am right, and the new bull market began after the election, it isn't about to end right now. We are in honeymoon time for this bull, when the most money will be made. Watch stocks here. Stocks that have had a $3 or a $4 handle forever are about to get notched up. Stocks stuck around $100 are about to bust out. We are in the zone.

Don't let the historians be the reason you found out that a bull market began election day. Take it from this grizzled pro that something happened -- Bush's re-election, the fact that the election wasn't stalled, Social Security, tort reform, whatever -- that made it so this election was a watershed for the bulls.

They just don't know it yet.

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James J. Cramer is a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he invites you to send comments on his column to [e-mail]. Listen to Cramer's RealMoney Radio show on your computer; just click here. Click here to buy Cramer's latest book, "You Got Screwed!" Click here to order Cramer's autobiography, "Confessions of a Street Addict."