# Federal Agencies Vary Voting Leave

Federal agencies have applied the U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s voting-leave guidance inconsistently. Employee reports describe one agency requiring agency-head approval for administrative leave, another offering three hours, and policies tied to polling-place hours and employees’ work schedules. Commenters say a prior four-hour administrative-leave policy was rescinded in January 2025 and agency policies changed during 2025; some employees reportedly received notice shortly before an election or after their state’s absentee-ballot deadline. For contractors supporting federal agencies, this is a workforce-availability and coordination issue, not a procurement opportunity.

- Contractors should verify voting-leave arrangements with their agency counterparts, since implementation can differ by agency.
- Account for possible variation in federal staff availability when planning coordination and support activities; the signal does not identify a new solicitation, award, or contract requirement.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Published:** October 30, 2026

### Government Entities
- U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)

### Key Quotes
> What if my supervisor was unreasonable, I was on leave restrictions, or had no earned leave to use. My point is to encourage early voting and acknowledge the late notice of this policy change/agency notification about leave policy is unfair and doesn’t leave us much time to vote early.
> — Original poster

### Sources
- [OPM Voting Roadblock for Fed Employees - Restricting Leave](https://www.reddit.com/r/fednews/comments/1xj0ibr/opm_voting_roadblock_for_fed_employees) - reddit-fednews