Senate Approves Paul Atkins as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission
This marks Atkins' second stint on the SEC and first leading the independent agency.
The U.S. Senate today held a recorded vote to confirm one individual nominated by President Donald Trump to serve on an independent agency within the federal government - specifically the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In a 52-44 vote, Paul Atkins was confirmed as a Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a term ending June 5, 2026. The position has been vacant since January 2025, when Gary Gensler resigned after serving since April 2021.
52 Republicans approved Atkins’ nomination. 43 Democrats and one Independent voted in opposition. Senators John Fetterman (D-PA), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Mark Warner (D-VA) did not vote. Trump has already re-nominated Atkins to another term on the SEC ending in June 2031. That will require a separate vote from the Senate.
Atkins was nominated to this position by Trump in December 2024. This marks his return to the SEC as he was previously a Commissioner from August 2002 to August 2008. Furthermore, Trump has indicated he will tap Atkins to serve as Chair of the SEC - which doesn’t require another vote from the Senate.
Atkins’ career began as a lawyer in the New York City and Paris offices of Davis Polk & Wardwell - working on corporate transactions. Notably, he was tapped as crisis president by a court-appointed bankruptcy trustee to oversee the sole surviving subsidiary of Bennett Funding Group, Inc. after the company was exposed for committing a $1 billion Ponzi scheme.
From 1990 to 1994, Atkins was a staffer to former SEC chairs Richard C. Breeden and Arthur Levitt. In December 2016, he joined a business forum assembled by Trump to advise him on economic issues.