‘88 Candidates to Be Without Guards Till Fall

WASHINGTON — The Secret Service will not start protecting presidential candidates until this fall at the earliest, a Treasury Department spokesman says.

Who eventually gets watched is a question decided by a committee made up of Treasury Secretary James A. Baker III--whose department oversees the Secret Service--and the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate.

Jane Vezeris, spokeswoman for the Secret Service, said that the committee’s decision usually is based on several factors, including whether the candidate has declared to be in the race, whether a campaign committee has been set up and whether the campaign has qualified for matching funds from the government.

Vezeris said that the committee has sole authority in deciding who is given protection.

Once a candidate gets Secret Service protection, the agents will follow that candidate around the clock until the campaign ends. Agency protection extends to the spouse of the major party presidential and vice presidential candidates beginning 120 days before voters go to the polls.