Did a Loudoun Co. School Board Member Break Federal Law?
Anne Donohue isn’t held accountable by the Biden-Harris regime—even for violating election law and oath of office.
Loudoun County Public Schools just can’t stay out of the headlines.
Filings show Anne Donohue, an at-large member of the northern Virginia school board, was elected last year while serving as a Justice Department attorney in the Biden-Harris administration. She also received an endorsement from the Democrat party—a potential violation of a law prohibiting federal employees from running as partisan candidates.
Anne Donohue. Credit: Loudoun County Public Schools
If true, that’s just the latest in a string of woes in Loudoun County.
The school district’s last superintendent was fired in December 2022 after a grand jury indicted him for covering up a transgender assault in a school bathroom. His highly paid successor is also in the spotlight for his extravagant travel expenses on the taxpayers’ dime and for not being transparent about student overdoses. Even the school board itself is being sued after shutting down public comments by parents concerned about an illegal alien gang member active in their children’s schools.
Under the 1939 Hatch Act, federal employees are prohibited from running as partisan candidates for public office or engaging in political activity. The goal is to keep the federal workforce impartial and avoid using public resources for partisan gain.
Yet Donohue—then active as a Biden administration lawyer—sought and received an endorsement from the Loudoun County Democratic Committee during her election in Nov. 2023. Instead of pursuing charges against her, the Biden Justice Department declined to take action “because Ms. Donohue agreed to resign from her employment to come into compliance with the law.”
In other words, they wouldn’t press charges because she’d already gotten away with it.
So much for blind justice. Of course the partisan Biden Justice Department didn’t prosecute one of their own—Donohue’s campaign clearly aligned with the department’s attacks on parents. Donohue promoted an event that called parents’ rights advocates “extremists.”
Rep. Ronnie Jackson (R) of Texas called her actions “a severe Hatch Act violation” and demanded Attorney General Merrick Garland fire her. “Donohue exemplifies liberal privilege and the rampant weaponization of the [Justice Department],” he told the Daily Wire.
But that’s just the start.
Election Law Violations?
As an attorney, Anne Donohue should be held to a high standard under the law—but she isn’t. Documents obtained by Restoration News reveal she worked as an election officer during the Nov. 2024 election at precinct 326 from 5:00 am until 8:30 pm. The Virginia Constitution’s Bill of Rights, Article II, Section 8 prohibits an elected official like Donohue from serving as an election officer. Virginia code 24.2-1017 seems to indicate this violation would be a class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.
As an attorney and a professor at George Washington University Law School, this shouldn’t be a shock to Donohue.
Loudoun County election registrar Judith Brown emailed Donohue days after the election on Nov. 12, notifying her that she was prohibited from serving as an election officer. Brown removed her from the election officer database—but there is no indication Donohue has been criminally charged.
According to the Virginia Department of Elections, the job of an election officer is to conduct an election “fairly and lawfully.” How can Donohue be trusted when she appears to have repeatedly disregarded the law? Why isn’t she being prosecuted for these violations?
Donohue failed to respond to a Restoration News inquiry. Restoration News asked the Loudoun Commonwealth’s Attorney if this issue falls under their jurisdiction and if so, will they investigate. Our request is under review by their office.
It’s up to Loudoun County residents to demand Donohue resign from the school board for disregarding her oath of office to support the constitution of the Commonwealth. Elected officials should not have special privilege to not be held accountable for violating the law.
(READ MORE: Did Money-Laundering Help Democrats Win Virginia in 2024?)
