With the resignation of Vice Chairman Matthew Petersen, at the end of the week, the commission will be virtually paralyzed.
The reason for this: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and his Republican-controlled U.S. Senate.
It was created in 1974 to enforce finance laws for House, Senate, presidential, and vice presidential campaigns.
Unlike most agencies, neither party is allowed to hold a working majority of seats at any time.
But while the commission has often deadlocked along party lines — especially in recent years — it still has played some role in issuing fines, auditing campaign filings, and investigating corruption.
But the Federal Election Commission has been a notable exception.
Two senators demanded that other expired seats be filled at the time, but this did not happen due to lack of agreement from then-Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. »
