List of Chairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission

The chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is one of the five commissioners designated by the president to serve as the agency's chief executive.[1] Chairs set enforcement and regulatory priorities, oversee the agency's day-to-day management, and represent the SEC in coordination with other domestic and international regulators. Unless otherwise noted, term dates are from the SEC's historical summary of chairmen and commissioners.[2]

The table below lists SEC chairs (including acting chairs) with their terms of service and appointing presidents.

Chairs

List of chairs

Main article: The United States Securities and Exchange Commission
See also: List of members of the Securities and Exchange Commission
No. Portrait Name State of residency Term of office Appointed by
Term start Term end Time in office
1 Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. Massachusetts June 30, 1934 September 23, 1935 1 year, 85 days Roosevelt
2 James M. Landis Massachusetts September 23, 1935 September 15, 1937 1 year, 357 days
3 William O. Douglas Connecticut August 17, 1937 April 15, 1939 1 year, 241 days
4 Jerome Frank Illinois May 18, 1939 April 9, 1941 1 year, 326 days
5 Edward C. Eicher Iowa April 9, 1941 January 20, 1942 286 days
6 Ganson Purcell January 20, 1942 June 30, 1946 4 years, 161 days
7 James J. Caffrey July 23, 1946 December 31, 1947 1 year, 161 days Truman
8 Edmond M. Hanrahan New York May 18, 1948 November 3, 1949 1 year, 169 days
9 Harry A. McDonald November 4, 1949 February 25, 1952 2 years, 113 days
10 Donald C. Cook Michigan February 26, 1952 June 17, 1953 1 year, 111 days
11 Ralph H. Demmler Pennsylvania June 27, 1953 May 25, 1955 1 year, 332 days Eisenhower
12 J. Sinclair Armstrong New York May 25, 1955 June 27, 1957 2 years, 33 days
13 Edward N. Gadsby Massachusetts August 20, 1957 March 26, 1961 3 years, 218 days
14 William L. Cary March 27, 1961 August 20, 1964 3 years, 146 days Kennedy
15 Manuel F. Cohen August 20, 1964 February 22, 1969 4 years, 186 days Johnson
16 Hamer H. Budge Idaho February 22, 1969 January 2, 1971 1 year, 314 days Nixon
17 William J. Casey New York April 14, 1971 February 2, 1973 1 year, 294 days
18 G. Bradford Cook Nebraska March 3, 1973 May 16, 1973 74 days
19 Ray Garrett Jr. Illinois August 6, 1973 October 28, 1975 2 years, 83 days
20 Roderick M. Hills California October 28, 1975 April 10, 1977 1 year, 164 days Ford
21 Harold M. Williams California April 18, 1977 March 1, 1981 3 years, 317 days Carter
22 John S. R. Shad May 6, 1981 June 18, 1987 6 years, 43 days Reagan
23 David Sturtevant Ruder Illinois August 7, 1987 September 30, 1989 2 years, 54 days
24 Richard C. Breeden New York October 11, 1989 May 7, 1993 3 years, 208 days Bush Sr.
– Mary Schapiro (acting) New York May 7, 1993 July 27, 1993 81 days Clinton
25 Arthur Levitt New York July 27, 1993 February 9, 2001 7 years, 227 days
26 Harvey Pitt New York August 3, 2001 February 18, 2003 1 year, 199 days Bush Jr.
27 William H. Donaldson New York February 18, 2003 June 30, 2005 2 years, 132 days
28 Christopher Cox California August 3, 2005 January 20, 2009 3 years, 170 days
29 Mary Schapiro New York January 27, 2009 December 14, 2012 3 years, 322 days Obama
30 Elisse B. Walter New York December 14, 2012 April 10, 2013 117 days
31 Mary Jo White New York April 10, 2013 January 20, 2017 3 years, 285 days
– Michael Piwowar (acting) Washington D.C. January 20, 2017 May 4, 2017 104 days Trump
32 Jay Clayton Pennsylvania May 4, 2017 December 23, 2020 3 years, 233 days
– Elad Roisman (acting) Maine December 24, 2020 January 20, 2021 27 days
– Allison Lee (acting) Washington D.C. January 20, 2021 April 17, 2021 87 days Biden
33 Gary Gensler Maryland April 17, 2021 January 20, 2025 3 years, 278 days
– Mark Uyeda (acting) California January 20, 2025 April 21, 2025 91 days Trump
34 Paul S. Atkins Virginia April 21, 2025 Present 333 days
See also: List of members of the Securities and Exchange Commission

The president designates one of the commissioners to serve as chair, the SEC's chief executive.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b "SEC Commissioners". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved February 5, 2026.
  2. ^ "SEC Historical Summary of Chairmen and Commissioners". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. January 5, 2026. Retrieved February 5, 2026.
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