Ajit Pai

This article is about the FCC commissioner. For the cricketer, see Ajit Pai (cricketer).

Ajit Pai
Official portrait, 2018
Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
In office
January 23, 2017 – January 20, 2021
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byTom Wheeler
Succeeded byJessica Rosenworcel
Member of the Federal Communications Commission
In office
May 14, 2012 – January 20, 2021
President
Preceded byMeredith Attwell Baker
Succeeded byAnna M. Gomez
Personal details
Born
Ajit Varadaraj Pai

(1973-01-10) January 10, 1973 (age 51)
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Janine Van Lancker
​
(m. 2010)​
Children2
Education

Ajit Varadaraj Pai (/əˈdʒiːt ˈpaɪ/;[1] born January 10, 1973) is an American lawyer who served as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from 2017 to 2021. He has been a partner at the private-equity firm Searchlight Capital since April 2021.[2]

The son of Indian immigrants to the United States, Pai grew up in Parsons, Kansas. He is a graduate of both Harvard University and the University of Chicago Law School. He worked as a lawyer in various offices of the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, with a two-year stint as an in-house lawyer for Verizon Communications. He joined the FCC as a lawyer in its Office of General Counsel in 2007. He was nominated to be a commissioner in 2011 by President Barack Obama, who followed tradition in preserving balance on the commission by accepting the recommendation of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.[3] He was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate on May 7, 2012,[4] and was sworn in on May 14, 2012, for a five-year term.[5]

In January 2017, newly inaugurated president Donald Trump designated Pai as FCC chairman.[6][7] He is the first Indian American to hold the office. In March 2017, Trump announced that he would renominate Pai to serve another five-year term (remaining Chairman of the FCC).[8] Pai was confirmed by the U.S. Senate for an additional five-year term on October 2, 2017.[9] Pai is a proponent of repealing net neutrality in the United States and, on December 14, 2017, voted with the majority of the FCC to reverse the decision to regulate the internet under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934. Pai resigned on January 20, 2021, the day of Joe Biden's inauguration as President of the United States.[10]

  1. ^ "PSA from Chairman of the FCC Ajit Pai" on YouTube
  2. ^ Primack, Dan (April 26, 2021). "Trump FCC chair Ajit Pai joins private equity firm". Axios. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  3. ^ Kastrenakes, Jacob (January 23, 2017). "Trump's new FCC chief is Ajit Pai, and he wants to destroy net neutrality". The Verge. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bio was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Trump's FCC: Tom Wheeler to be replaced, set-top box reform could be dead". November 10, 2016. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  6. ^ Furchtgott-Roth, Harold (January 22, 2017). "President Trump Designates Ajit Pai As Chairman Of FCC". Forbes. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  7. ^ Devin Coldewey (January 23, 2017). "Trump's FCC Chairman pick Ajit Pai heralds a weaker, meeker Commission". TechCrunch. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  8. ^ Johnson, Ted (March 7, 2017). "President Trump Renominates Ajit Pai for New FCC Term". Variety. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  9. ^ Shepardson, David (October 2, 2017). "Senate Confirms FCC Chairman to New Five-Year Term". U.S. News & World Report. Reuters. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  10. ^ Feiner, Lauren (November 30, 2020). "FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will step down on January 20". CNBC. Retrieved November 30, 2020.