Matthew S. Petersen


Matthew Spencer Petersen is a former member of the United States Federal Election Commission. In 2017, he was nominated by President Donald Trump to be a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, but his nomination was withdrawn after receiving criticism for his poor performance during his confirmation hearing. On August 26, 2019, Petersen announced his resignation from the FEC, effective August 31. No reason was given for the resignation.
Petersen joined the law firm Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky.

Education and career

Peterson received an associate degree with high honors from Utah Valley State College in 1993, then went on to graduate magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Brigham Young University in 1996. 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 in Washington, D.C.
From 2002 to 2005, Petersen served as counsel to the United States House Committee on House Administration. During his tenure, he was involved in the crafting of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and the House–Senate negotiations that culminated in the bill's ultimate 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. On December 18, 2018 he was elected Vice-Chair. On August 26, 2019, he announced his resignation, effective August 31.

Failed nomination to district court

On September 11, 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. The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary unanimously rated Petersen as "Qualified." On December 13, 2017, during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee that has since gone viral, Senator John Neely Kennedy questioned Petersen about legal procedure, asking if Petersen knew what the Daubert standard was, and what a motion in limine was. He struggled to answer.
In response to the questions on his experience and knowledge, he said:
Petersen's answers 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 complained that, of the "basic questions of law" Senator Kennedy asked, Petersen 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".
Petersen withdrew his nomination on December 16, 2017. On January 3, 2018, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. On January 5, 2018, the White House renominated 21 of 26 federal judicial nominees who had been returned by the U.S. Senate. Petersen was not among the 21 individuals who were renominated.