POLITICAL FORCES: Forces in the marketing environment that are shaped by elected (and sometimes appointed) officials that impact the decisions made by a business organization. Government officials can enact laws that could cause serious harm to specific business sectors. For example, a state that passes laws prohibiting off-shore drilling would dramatically affect an oil drilling company's business outlook. Through environmental scanning a business looks at these political forces that might affect them in the short and long term. See also | marketing environment | environmental scanning | marketing plan | legal forces | regulatory forces |