SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw Departs Agency

On January 2, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw departed the agency after serving for over a decade in multiple divisions. Commissioner Crenshaw, the lone Democrat at the Commission, was appointed to her seat by President Donald Trump in 2020. She first joined the Commission in 2013 and has served in the Examinations Division (formerly the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations), the Division of Investment Management, and as Counsel to former Commissioners Kara Stein and Robert Jackson Jr. In a joint statement, SEC Chair Paul Atkins and Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda stated “Commissioner Crenshaw has listened carefully, engaged substantively, and approached every day with the purpose of safeguarding investors and strengthening our markets.”

Commissioner Crenshaw’s departure leaves two seats vacant at the five-person Commission, with the three remaining members all Republican appointees. According to federal law, no more than three Commissioners can be from the same political party. Importantly, the Commission is still able to operate, hold meetings, and advance agency business with three members present. President Trump and Senate leadership will likely negotiate over the coming months to agree on a replacement, although no timeline has been established.

Click here to read a statement on Commissioner Crenshaw’s departure from SEC Chair Atkins and Commissioners Peirce and Uyeda.