Biden was just formally recognized as president-elect after delay. Now what happens?
The General Services Administration on Monday formally recognized President-elect Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election — allowing the stalled transition process to move forward.
Biden was projected the winner of the election by major media outlets, including The Associated Press, on Nov. 7. He has 306 Electoral College votes to President Donald Trump’s 232 — above the 270 threshold needed to win, according to The AP. But the transfer of power process was delayed for weeks as Emily Murphy, head of the GSA, refused to determine Biden as the apparent winner, a process called ascertainment.
Her ascertainment gives the federal government clearance to move forward with the transition. Without it, the Biden-Harris transition team didn’t have access to key information or resources it needs to prepare for Biden to take office on Jan. 20, 2021.
Now, in a letter sent Monday evening, Murphy informed Biden that the Trump administration was ready to move forward with the transfer of power, while Trump tweeted that he still “believe(s) we will prevail” in challenging the outcome of the election.
Here’s what her ascertainment means for the transition team.
Access to key information
Murphy’s ascertainment will allow current Trump administration officials to coordinate with Biden’s transition team.
This means Biden’s team will have access to classified briefing materials that government officials have been preparing for months, according to the Center for Presidential Transition.
Transition officials will also be able to meet with federal officials to discuss the Trump administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to discuss national security information, Yohannes Abraham, executive director of Biden’s transition, told CNN.
Previously, Biden’s team was barred from meeting with government officials.
Biden emphasized the importance of gaining access to that information amid surging coronavirus cases and preparations for distributing a vaccine, saying last week that “more people may die” without a smooth transfer of power and coordination with Trump’s administration.
Others had also warned that a stalled transition could hurt the country’s national security efforts.
The hiring process
Biden’s team will also now have access to “agency succession plans” that name acting officials to temporarily hold key positions until the president-elect’s nominees are confirmed by the U.S. Senate, according to the Center for Presidential Transition.
The transition team has started assembling White House staff, and on Monday named several picks for Cabinet posts, including key national security and international relations roles. Biden is expected to continue naming Cabinet picks this week. His nominees will still need to be confirmed by the Senate, which could be controlled by Republicans or Democrats depending on a pair of January runoff elections in Georgia.
The GSA’s ascertainment allows the U.S. Department of Justice to grant final security clearances for Biden’s appointees and transition officials who will be “entering the administration on Day One,” the center says.
Before Murphy’s ascertainment, Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain told ABC News that “we’re not in position to get background checks on cabinet nominees and so there are definite impacts.”
A delayed transition can “hamstring a new administration right out of the gate” by slowing the hiring process for roughly 4,000 positions, including “critical national security and health postings,” The AP reports.
Office space and funding
Biden’s team will now have access to government funding and office space usually made available to the president-elect.
That includes $6.3 million in transition funds and 175,000 square feet of federal office space, including “secure facilities for sensitive intelligence briefings,” the Center for Presidential Transition says.
Before the GSA’s ascertainment, the transition team had been raising money to fund the process, The Guardian reports. Biden had said the money was less of a concern but that the recognition was “crucial” to coordinating with government officials on vaccine distribution.
Biden’s transition team will also have access to an official government website, email domains and government software applications, the center says.
Government emails will help the DHS protect incoming officials’ privacy when discussing issues such as national security, The Guardian reports.
On Monday, the president-elect tweeted out his transition team’s website with a .gov domain.
This story was originally published November 24, 2020 at 7:24 AM with the headline "Biden was just formally recognized as president-elect after delay. Now what happens?."
