Federal Election Commission vice chair announces resignation, leaving the agency powerless

Federal Election Commission HQ in Washington, DC.

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

published 26 August 2019

A highly contested presidential race is when the U.S. would need an election watchdog the most.

Yet the Federal Election Commission — the agency tasked with overseeing and regulating campaign finance in federal elections — is about to be rendered essentially powerless. That's because Vice Chair Matt Petersen submitted his resignation on Monday, leaving it without the four-person quota needed to vote, conduct investigations, and impose fines, among other things, The Center for Public Integrity reports.

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The reduction of the FEC's power to essentially zero has been a long time coming, with the six-person commission running with just four members since early 2018. Commission chairs are usually nominated in pairs from opposing parties, but Trump only nominated Republican and bonafide Trump backer Trey Trainor back in late 2017. That means come September, the FEC will be left without most of its powers for the first time since 2008 — right as the heated 2020 election cycle really heats up.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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