How the Hatch Act changes after Election Day – By Jessie Bur (Federal Times) / Nov 6 2020
The Hatch Act continues to restrict federal employee political behavior no matter the time of year, but what constitutes a Hatch Act violation for most employees changes after Election Day, according to an advisory issued Nov. 4 by the Office of Special Counsel.
Normally, federal employees are prohibited from wearing or displaying campaign items while in the federal workplace, as these constitute engaging in political activity on behalf of a particular candidate, which the law prohibits.
But according to the OSC, those “candidates” effectively cease to exist after the election, for the purposes of enforcing the Hatch Act. Instead, one person is the victor of the race and the remainder is the losing party, even if vote tabulation has yet to determine which is which.
“For purposes of the Hatch Act, an individual is no longer considered a candidate when the outcome of the election is determined by vote of the Electoral College on the sixth day of January after the election. But while presidential candidates may retain their status as candidates well past Election Day, OSC has consistently advised that, with rare exception, post-Election Day activities showing support for or opposition to a presidential candidate will not affect the result of the election for that office,” the advisory states.
Continue > https://www.federaltimes.com/management/2020/11/05/how-the-hatch-act-changes-after-election-day/
