(The Politico) The top Democratic nominee for the Federal Election Commission has withdrawn his name from consideration, deepening the nomination meltdown that has effectively shut down the commission during a critical election year.

Former FEC Chairman Robert Lenhard, the Democratic nominee, dropped out because Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) couldn't guarantee timely confirmation by the Senate, according to a letter Reid sent to the White House today.

Reid's letter, obtained by Politico, warns the White House that it could take several more months to find another Democrat to nominate to the bipartisan election commission. 

"This development now makes a resolution of this conflict more difficult because I have lost an exceptional leader for the FEC," Reid wrote.

Due to a nominations standoff between Reid and the White House, the FEC board has been rendered completely dysfunctional and unable to make major decisions on campaign finance and other key election issues.

The standoff began last year when Senate Democrats blocked the nomination of Bush nominee Hans Von Spakovsky, who was seen by Democrats as too conservative. The stalemate worsened in December when the terms of four sitting FEC commissioners expired at the end of the year and were not replaced because Reid and the White House couldn't work out an agreement.

Now, with Lenhard dropping out, the Democrats have no nominee for the commission. Reid says the standoff "has derived the agency of a functional quorum" and "taken the nation's campaign finance watchdog off the beat."

Copyright 2008 POLITICO

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