NewzBailey was originally brought in to help ease tensions between former Attorney General Pam Bondi and former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino. WASHINGTON (AP) — Andrew Bailey, one of the FBI’s two deputy directors, announced Monday that he was leaving the position after just over a year on the job and would be returning to Missouri to spend time with his family. Bailey was named co-deputy director in August 2025 to serve alongside Dan Bongino at a time of high tensions between FBI and Justice Department leadership over the handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
The appointment was unusual because the FBI for years has only had one person at a time in the deputy director position, the bureau’s No. A former attorney general from Missouri and ardent Republican backer of President Donald Trump, Bailey remained in his position after Bongino announced his departure and as the FBI in January added another deputy director, veteran agent Christopher Raia, to serve under Director Kash Patel. Bailey announced his resignation from the FBI in a post on X on Monday in which he thanked Trump, Attorney General Todd Blanche and Patel for “the opportunity to serve in the FBI.” “With great pride in what we have accomplished, I am announcing that I am stepping down to return to my family in Missouri.
I am confident Director Patel will continue to reform the FBI, combat violent crime, defend the homeland, ensure strong organizational accountability, and restore public trust in this institution of excellence,” Bailey wrote. Patel in his own post credited him for “dedicated service” and for “instituting critical reforms.” Bailey maintained a low public profile during his brief tenure as deputy director, though he was present in January when agents executed a search warrant at the main election facility in Fulton County, Georgia, as part of an FBI election fraud investigation. 2 job.A former attorney general from Missouri and ardent Republican backer of President Donald Trump, Bailey remained in his position after Bongino announced his departure and as the FBI in January added another deputy director, veteran agent Christopher Raia, to serve under Director Kash Patel.Bailey announced his resignation from the FBI in a post on X on Monday in which he thanked Trump, Attorney General Todd Blanche and Patel for “the opportunity to serve in the FBI.”“With great pride in what we have accomplished, I am announcing that I am stepping down to return to my family in Missouri.
FBI Deputy Director Andrew Bailey said Monday he is departing the bureau roughly a year after joining the Trump administration. Bailey, in a post on social platform X, thanked President Trump, Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel “for the opportunity to serve” in the post. “With great pride in what we have...
Andrew Bailey, deputy director of the FBI, is leaving his post after just over a year of service, Bailey and Director Kash Patel confirmed Monday.Why it matters: Bailey's resignation adds to turnover under Patel, as top aides and experienced security officials have left the agency.What they're saying: "With great pride in what we have accomplished, I am announcing that I am stepping down to return to my family in Missouri," Bailey wrote on X Monday."I am confident Director Patel will continue to reform the FBI, combat violent crime, defend the homeland, ensure strong organizational accountability, and restore public trust in this institution of excellence."Replying to Bailey's post, Patel said he was thankful for his service and that his "fantastic contribution[s] instituting critical reforms which resulted in our historic success will live on. Andrew's leadership at the FBI will be missed but we are grateful he answered the call to serve!"When reached for comment, the FBI directed Axios to Bailey's Monday morning X post.Zoom in: Bailey, Missouri's former attorney general, oversaw some of the FBI's election security efforts, making his departure a little more than a month before the midterms particularly notable.Bailey was also in charge of the FBI's raid on the Fulton County Election Hub and Operation Center in Georgia in January, where agents seized ballots and other documents related to the 2020 election, according to then-Attorney General Pam Bondi.Yes, but: A senior administration official familiar with Bailey's departure told Axios' Marc Caputo that Bailey didn't have much of a portfolio on election security or otherwise."The short answer is no: Bailey wasn't doing anything," the official said. "He did nothing on voter fraud, nothing on election integrity.
He quit because he had nothing to do."Axios contacted the FBI again for comment on the official's remarks.Catch up quick: Bailey was first tapped to serve as co-deputy director alongside Dan Bongino last August, an uncommon dual-leadership arrangement.Many FBI agents believed Bondi brought Bailey in as a potential successor if President Trump soured on Patel, the New York Times reports.Bondi left her post as attorney general in April. Bongino announced last December that he was leaving the FBI to return to podcasting. After Bongino departed, Christopher Raia, the former head of the FBI's New York fi…
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