A new report says that when the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Elon Musk less than a week before President Trump’s inauguration, only one member—the current chairman—voted against filing the lawsuit.
The vote behind closed doors was 4–1, with three Democrats and Republican Hester Peirce joining to support the lawsuit over Musk’s late disclosure of a Twitter stock purchase in early 2022, Reuters reported today. The one dissent reportedly came from Republican Mark Uyeda, who was subsequently named acting SEC chairman by Trump.
Uyeda also asked SEC enforcement staff “to declare that a case they wanted to bring against Elon Musk was not motivated by politics, an unusual request that the staffers refused,” Bloomberg reported last month. Reuters said its sources confirmed that “staff refused to sign the pledge, as it is not typical SEC practice.”
Reuters reported that two of its sources “said Uyeda and his fellow Republican Peirce took issue with what the SEC wanted Musk to pay—giving up $150 million in alleged unjust enrichment plus a penalty. Nonetheless, Peirce joined with the three Democrats in voting to sue.”
An SEC spokesperson declined to comment on the vote when contacted by Ars today. The three current commissioners are Uyeda, Peirce, and Democrat Caroline Crenshaw. Gary Gensler, a Democrat who was chair under Biden, left upon Trump’s inauguration. Democrat Jaime Lizárraga also resigned from the SEC in January.
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