Key Takeaways
- • The White House announced a bipartisan slate of four SEC and CFTC nominees on Nov. 12, 2026, marking its first Democratic commissioner nominations for both agencies in the second Trump administration.
- • At the SEC, Kristin Johnson (D, former CFTC commissioner 2022-2025) and Steven Levine (R, senior adviser at the White House Council of Economic Advisers) were nominated; Johnson's term would expire June 2029 and Levine's June 2030.
- • At the CFTC, Nathan Anonick (R, adviser to Senate Agriculture Chair John Boozman) was nominated for a term expiring June 2031, and Matthew Rowland (D, CFTC counsel assigned to the Senate Agriculture Committee) for a term expiring April 2028.
- • Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott has scheduled confirmation hearings for Johnson and Levine on Nov. 19; the Senate Agriculture Committee has not yet announced hearings for Anonick and Rowland.
- • Both agencies are designed for five commissioners with a maximum of three from one party, and confirmation would restore bipartisan balance as they weigh rules on corporate disclosures, shareholder proposals and crypto regulation.
Summary
Nearly two years into the second Trump administration, the White House has nominated its first Democratic commissioners to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The bipartisan slate of four candidates was announced on Nov. 12, according to Pensions & Investments.
At the SEC, the White House nominated Kristin Johnson, a Democrat who served as a CFTC commissioner from 2022 to 2025, and Steven Levine, a Republican who is a senior adviser at the White House Council of Economic Advisers and previously served as counsel to SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda. If confirmed, Johnson would serve a term expiring in June 2029 and Levine's term would expire in June 2030.
At the CFTC, the White House nominated Nathan Anonick, a Republican and adviser to Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman, R-Ark., for a term expiring in June 2031. On the Democratic side, it nominated Matthew Rowland, a CFTC counsel assigned to the Senate Agriculture Committee, for a term expiring in April 2028.
Both commissions are currently short of full membership. The SEC has two Republicans, Chair Paul Atkins and Mark Uyeda, while the CFTC has only Chair Michael Selig, a Republican. Both agencies are structured for five commissioners, with no party able to hold more than three seats, so a full slate would give the president's party a 3-2 majority. Caroline Crenshaw, the last Democrat at the SEC, departed in early January 2026 when her term expired, and the CFTC has had no Democratic commissioner since Johnson left in September 2025.
Sources cited by Pensions & Investments had expressed concern that a single-party commission would worsen regulatory 'pingpong' and harm market participants, given the agencies' pending work on corporate disclosure, shareholder proposals and cryptocurrency regulation. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott, R-S.C., has scheduled confirmation hearings for Johnson and Levine on Nov. 19. The Senate Agriculture Committee has yet to schedule hearings for Anonick and Rowland.
At the SEC, the White House nominated Kristin Johnson, a Democrat who served as a CFTC commissioner from 2022 to 2025, and Steven Levine, a Republican who is a senior adviser at the White House Council of Economic Advisers and previously served as counsel to SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda. If confirmed, Johnson would serve a term expiring in June 2029 and Levine's term would expire in June 2030.
At the CFTC, the White House nominated Nathan Anonick, a Republican and adviser to Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman, R-Ark., for a term expiring in June 2031. On the Democratic side, it nominated Matthew Rowland, a CFTC counsel assigned to the Senate Agriculture Committee, for a term expiring in April 2028.
Both commissions are currently short of full membership. The SEC has two Republicans, Chair Paul Atkins and Mark Uyeda, while the CFTC has only Chair Michael Selig, a Republican. Both agencies are structured for five commissioners, with no party able to hold more than three seats, so a full slate would give the president's party a 3-2 majority. Caroline Crenshaw, the last Democrat at the SEC, departed in early January 2026 when her term expired, and the CFTC has had no Democratic commissioner since Johnson left in September 2025.
Sources cited by Pensions & Investments had expressed concern that a single-party commission would worsen regulatory 'pingpong' and harm market participants, given the agencies' pending work on corporate disclosure, shareholder proposals and cryptocurrency regulation. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott, R-S.C., has scheduled confirmation hearings for Johnson and Levine on Nov. 19. The Senate Agriculture Committee has yet to schedule hearings for Anonick and Rowland.
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