lame duck

In politics, a lame duck or outgoing politician is an elected official whose successor has already been elected or will be soon. Outgoing politicians are often seen as having less influence with other politicians due to their limited time left in office. Conversely, a lame duck is free to make decisions that exercise the standard powers with little fear of backlash, such as issuing executive orders, pardons, or other controversial edicts. Lame duck politicians result from term limits, planned retirement, or electoral losses, and are especially noticeable where political systems build in a delay between the announcement of results and the taking of office by election winners. Even at the local level, politicians who do not seek re-election can lose credibility and influence. Uncompleted projects may fall to the wayside as their influence diminishes.

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