Conflicts of Interest Rarely Kept SEC Chairmen From Voting

SEC Chairman Jay Clayton skipped votes on less than 5 percent of the rulemaking and administrative matters the commission considered during the first five months of his tenure, a rate comparable to his predecessor, Mary Jo White, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis.

The low rate of non-votes for Clayton and White, who both came to the Securities and Exchange Commission from top-tier law firms, suggests their representation of major companies didn’t produce the sort of conflicts that might prompt recusals, and that some government watchdogs and lawmakers expected. The agency won’t publicly explain the no-shows, but they likely were ...