[Biden Victory] Concerns Over Biden Transition Delays Due to Election Confirmation Postponement

Delays Expected in Personnel Verification, Government Complex Access, and COVID-19 Response Transition

[Asia Economy International Desk Reporter] President Donald Trump’s refusal to concede the election is expected to cause disruptions in the transition of power.

According to CNN on the 7th (local time), the Biden camp has been operating a transition committee since last summer.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jeff Zients, who served as the White House National Economic Council (NEC) director under the Barack Obama administration; former Senator Ted Kaufman, who has advised Biden for decades; New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham; and Anita Dunn, former White House Communications Director under Obama, have joined as co-chairs and are actively involved.

The transition committee has been reviewing policy implementation plans and personnel appointments related to executive orders that Biden could issue immediately upon taking office.

Biden has stated that he plans to strengthen racial diversity in his cabinet and appoint women to senior positions, aiming for ideological and geographical diversity as well.

Despite most of the vote counting being completed and the winner becoming clear, President Trump’s camp has filed various lawsuits and refused to accept the election results, making disruptions in the power transfer process inevitable.

The Biden transition team has stated that they will continue preparations for the administration handover in January next year. The transition committee’s website (BuildBackBetter.com) was also launched on the 4th.

Politico, a U.S. political media outlet, expressed concerns that the uncertain election results could become a new obstacle.

Politico also predicted that the transition committee will have to operate on a tighter schedule due to the delayed confirmation of the winner.

Politico pointed out, "Even if the election proceeds smoothly, the presidential transition team typically has just over two months to form a government filled with more than 4,000 political appointees, so it usually moves at a hectic pace."

The transition committee can conduct FBI background checks on potential cabinet nominees. However, until the final election results are confirmed, they cannot receive cooperation from the Office of Government Ethics (OGE). OGE’s vetting is the second stage of personnel screening.

In past transitions, committees usually submitted lists of candidates for OGE vetting by early or mid-December.

Also, until the election is over, transition personnel cannot enter federal government buildings. They cannot coordinate with current administration officials or identify critical decisions or urgent matters.

Biden has formed an independent "shadow task force (TF)" to completely reverse the Trump administration’s COVID-19 response strategy of "leaving it to the states," but this response may also be delayed.

Additionally, under the Presidential Transition Act, the president-elect can request the General Services Administration (GSA) to provide office space, communication services, personnel, and funding to operate the transition committee and prepare for inauguration. However, since the election results remain uncertain, this too is expected to face setbacks.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.