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Matthew S. Petersen
Chairman of the Federal Election Commission
In office January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Ann M. Ravel
Succeeded by	Steven T. Walther
In office January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2010
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Steven T. Walther
Succeeded by	Cynthia L. Bauerly
Member of the Federal Election Commission
Incumbent
Assumed office June 24, 2008
President	George W. Bush Barack Obama Donald Trump
Preceded by	Hans von Spakovsky
Personal details
Born	1970 (age 54–55) Torrance, California, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Education	Utah Valley State College (AS) Brigham Young University (BA) University of Virginia School of Law (JD)

Matthew Spencer Petersen (born 1970) is a member of the United States Federal Election Commission and a nominee to be a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

Education and career

Petersen graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in philosophy from Brigham Young University in 1996. He also received an Associate of Science with high honors from Utah Valley State College. Petersen received his Juris Doctor in 1999 from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a member of the Virginia Law Review. From 1999 to 2002, he practiced election and campaign finance law at Wiley Rein LLP in Washington, D.C.

From 2002 to 2005, Petersen served as counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on House Administration. During his tenure, he was involved in the crafting of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) and the House–Senate negotiations that culminated in HAVA's passage. From 2005 to 2008, he served as Republican chief counsel to the United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.

Petersen was nominated to the Federal Election Commission by President George W. Bush on June 12, 2008, and unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on June 24, 2008. He served as Chairman in 2010 and 2016.

Nomination to district court

External videos
Video Shows Trump Judicial Nominee Unable To Answer Basic Questions Of Law, NPR

On September 7, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Petersen to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, to the seat vacated by Judge Richard W. Roberts, who assumed senior status on March 16, 2016. On December 13, 2017, during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee that has since gone viral, Senator John Neely Kennedy (R-LA) questioned Petersen about legal procedure, asking if Petersen knew what the Daubert standard was, and what a motion in limine was.

In response to the questions on his experience and knowledge, he said:

My background is not in litigation...And I understand, and I appreciate this line of questioning. I understand the challenge that would be ahead of me if I were fortunate enough to become a district court judge. I understand that the path that many successful district court judges have taken has been a different one than I have taken. But as I mentioned in my earlier answer, I believe that the path that I have taken to be one who’s been in a decision-making role in somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 enforcement matters, overseen I don’t know how many cases in federal court the administration has been a party to during my time."

Petersen's answers have received criticism in the press and from lawmakers. The New York Times described it as one of the "more painful Senate hearings in recent memory." Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) complained that, of the "basic questions of law" Petersen faced, he couldn't "answer a single one." Legal scholar Alicia Bannon blamed Petersen's answers on "a lack of preparation and basic understanding of pretty basic legal concepts".

References

1. Petersen, Matthew Spencer. "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees" (PDF). United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
2. "FEC Elects Matthew Petersen as Chairman for 2016; Steven Walther to Serve as Vice Chairman". Federal Election Commission (Press release). December 17, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2017.
3. "Matthew S. Petersen Official Biography". Federal Election Commission. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
4. "Video Shows Trump Judicial Nominee Unable To Answer Basic Questions Of Law". NPR. December 15, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2017.
5. "President Donald J. Trump Announces Seventh Wave of Judicial Candidates - The White House".
6. ^ Blake, Aaron (2017-12-15). "Analysis | That painful exchange between a Trump judicial pick and a GOP senator, annotated". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
7. Bowden, John (14 December 2017). "Dem senator bashes Trump judicial nominee over hearing testimony: 'Hoo-boy'".
8. ^ Bromwich, Jonah Engel; Chokshi, Niraj (2017-12-15). "Trump Judicial Nominee Attracts Scorn After Flopping in Hearing". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
9. Whitehouse, Sheldon (December 14, 2017). "MUST WATCH: Republican @SenJohnKennedy asks one of @realDonaldTrump's US District Judge nominees basic questions of law & he can't answer a single one. Hoo-boy.pic.twitter.com/fphQx2o1rc". @SenWhitehouse. Retrieved 2017-12-15. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)

• 1970 births
• Living people
• 20th-century lawyers
• 21st-century lawyers
• Brigham Young University alumni
• Members of the Federal Election Commission
• Utah Republicans
• Utah Valley University alumni
• University of Virginia School of Law alumni