Political Activities and Campaigns on Campus

Swarthmore College encourages members of our community to be engaged civically and to participate in the electoral process at all levels. At the same time, as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt entity, the College is subject to federal, state, and local laws and regulations regarding political and campaign activities. As a result, the College must maintain a nonpartisan atmosphere on its premises. Here is some guidance on the rules the College community must follow regarding political activity on campus. 
 
Faculty and staff may only engage in partisan political activities on their own time, in their personal capacities, and without the use or support of College resources. Students may engage in partisan political activities without the use or support of College resources and must make clear that their activities do not represent the viewpoint of the College.  College community members may sponsor and conduct nonpartisan political activities at the College in accordance with this policy.

Political Campaigns and Candidates for Public Office 
The College is prohibited, by law, from endorsing candidates for political office or making any contribution of money, goods, or services to candidates, including the use of College facilities or any other College resources. We are available to offer guidance to help members of our College community avoid intentionally or unintentionally endorsing or contributing to political campaigns in a manner that jeopardizes the College’s nonprofit status. 

Under the Internal Revenue Code, 501(c)(3) organizations cannot “participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements) any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.” The IRC further states that “[c]ontributions to political campaign funds or public statements of position (verbal or written) made on behalf of the organization in favor of or opposition to any candidate for public office violate the prohibition against political campaign activity.”

The consequences of violating this rule include the revocation of an institution’s nonprofit (tax-exempt) status and the imposition of excise taxes. 

Certain voter education activities (including presenting public forums and publishing voter education guides) conducted in a non-partisan manner do not constitute prohibited political campaign activity. In addition, other activities intended to encourage people to participate in the electoral process, such as voter registration and get-out-the-vote drives, would not be prohibited political campaign activity if conducted in a non-partisan manner.

Lobbying
According to the Internal Revenue Service, generally, no organization may qualify for section 501(c)(3) status if a substantial part of its activities is attempting to influence legislation (commonly known as lobbying). Legislation includes action by Congress, any state legislature, any local council, or similar governing body, with respect to acts, bills, resolutions, or similar items (such as legislative confirmation of appointive office), or by the public in referendum, ballot initiative, constitutional amendment, or similar procedure. However, it does not include actions by executive, judicial, or administrative bodies. Examples of influencing legislation include contacting, or urging the public to contact, members or employees of a legislative body for the purpose of proposing, supporting, or opposing legislation. Engaging in substantial amounts of lobbying activities may result in a loss of an organization’s tax-exempt status, additional filing requirements and/or excise taxes.

Organizations may engage in issues of public policy without the activity being considered as lobbying.  For example, an organization may conduct educational meetings, prepare and distribute educational materials, or otherwise consider public policy issues in an educational manner without jeopardizing its tax-exempt status.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can College resources or facilities be used for a political candidate or party? 
To abide by the law, College resources may not be used in connection with a political candidate's and/or campaign's activities, which includes raising money, organizing, or otherwise supporting any outside organization or individual whose purpose is to further the cause of a candidate for public office or a political party. “College resources” is defined broadly and includes, but is not limited to, funds, supplies, printers, phones, vehicles, facilities, email networks and email addresses, and communication channels such as College “listservs” like the faculty-staff digest, College social media accounts and campus mail.

College-recognized student organizations may use available College space for nonpartisan political activities, subject to approval by the Events Management Office (and subordinate to educational use of the facility or facilities), as long as students make clear that their activities do not represent the viewpoint of the College. Approval for the use of College space must be sought from the Events Management Office.

Faculty, staff and students may invite a candidate to speak in a non-candidate capacity on topics relevant to a course or that are otherwise of interest to students or the broader community. Still, such visits must be nonpartisan, unrelated to the visitor’s campaign for public office, and accompanied by a statement making clear the non-candidate capacity in which the candidate is appearing. 

Any such use of College space will require all announcements and advertisements of the event to clearly indicate the name of the sponsoring organization and include these statements:

• Swarthmore College does not support or oppose candidates for public office.
• The opinions expressed during this program are not those of Swarthmore College. 

These statements must also be read at the beginning and end of the appearance.

Can the College sponsor political forums or debates?
The Internal Revenue Code permits tax-exempt organizations to sponsor political forums or debates provided they are sufficiently non-partisan in nature and are conducted for the purpose of educating voters. All legally qualified political candidates must be invited to such forums and be given equal access and opportunity to speak. For such forums or debates, the following guidelines apply:

• Approval for the forum or debate must be sought from the Events Management Office at least 30 days prior to the event in order to allow sufficient review and preparation by the  relevant College offices. Requests for space for such forums or debates should be made sufficiently timely to allow a meaningful invitation to all prospective participants.
• The agenda for the forum or debate should address a wide range of issues of interest to members of the College community.
• A non-partisan individual should serve as moderator.
• The moderator should state, at the beginning and the conclusion of the program, that the views expressed by the participants are their own and not those of the College, and that sponsorship of the forum is not intended as an endorsement of any particular candidate.

May a faculty or staff member identify their College position or title when they engage in personal political activity?
When engaging in campaign activity off campus, faculty and staff need to take care not to give the impression, even inadvertently, that they are representing or expressing the views of the College. If you do decide to share your title or College position while engaging in personal political activity, you should, when possible, provide a  disclaimer that any statements or actions are undertaken in a personal capacity and not on behalf of Swarthmore College. Please note that when you make a donation to certain campaigns, you may be required by the campaign to provide your occupation as well as the name of your employer. These disclosures do not require use of a disclaimer.

May College community members engage in voter education activities on-campus?
According to the IRC, certain voter education activities (including presenting public forums and publishing voter education guides) conducted in a non-partisan manner are not prohibited political campaign activity. In addition, other activities intended to encourage people to participate in the electoral process, such as voter registration and get-out-the-vote drives, would not be prohibited political campaign activity if conducted in a non-partisan manner.  In fact, in February 2018, Swarthmore President Valerie Smith called for the creation of a nonpartisan committee to increase student participation in our democracy through voter registration and voting in all primary and general elections. ​

The Voter Registration/Get Out the Vote Steering Committee (GOTV Committee) was called to action in part in response to the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE), which showed that while a majority of eligible Swarthmore students register to vote, voter turnout was below or at the national average for colleges and universities.

However, community members may not use College resources to engage in voter education that favors a particular candidate or party. This includes promoting action, including voting, concerning issues that are closely associated with one or more specific candidate(s).

If anyone is interested in engaging in neutral, nonpartisan voter education activities on the Swarthmore College campus, please contact vote@swarthmore.edu for permission and more information.

May Non-College Organizations host partisan political activities in College spaces?
Organizations without affiliation with the College are ineligible to use College space to host partisan political activities.  For more information see:

• The Internal Revenue Service FAQ with detailed guidance.
• The American Council on Education has produced an issue brief with helpful information. 

This policy was last updated on August 16, 2024. For questions, contact the Office of General Counsel.