September 25th, 2025

End Citizens United Statement on FEC Commissioner Trey Trainor’s Resignation

End Citizens United Senior Fellow Ellen Weintraub, who served as Commissioner and four-time Chair of the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) from 2002 to 2025, issued the following statement on news that Commissioner Trey Trainor is resigning:

“The FEC is one of the few federal agencies that actually has jurisdiction to address lawbreaking by politicians and officeholders, including the President of the United States. But it cannot do its job without a sufficient number of commissioners to make decisions. With just two members and no nominations to fill the vacant seats, President Trump is intentionally sidelining the nation’s campaign finance watchdog. Restoring the quorum is the bare minimum to have any safeguards against corruption.”

Trainor’s resignation leaves the Commission with only two commissioners. The law establishes the agency as a six-member body, but a minimum of four commissioners is needed to restore quorum and allow the agency to resume its official functions––like investigating alleged violations of law, making rules, conducting audits, offering official guidance to political committees, and imposing fines. The FEC has been left without a quorum since May, rendering it unable to act while billions of dollars flow into the 2026 election cycle.

Since her illegal firing in February, Weintraub has been sounding the alarm on President Trump’s attacks on the agency. She detailed what’s happening to the agency in a recent interview with WCPT, warned of the consequences for the midterm elections in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, and explained to Politico how campaigns are left in legal limbo with no functioning oversight.

To request an interview with Weintraub, one of the nation’s leading experts on the FEC, contact Bawadden Sayed (bawadden@endcitizensunited.org).