Dan Bongino to leave FBI deputy director job — with rumored replacement waiting in the wings

WASHINGTON — FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino will resign his position with less than a year on the job — after reportedly packing up his belongings and bidding adieu to his team.

“I will be leaving my position with the FBI in January,” Bongino announced on social media Wednesday night. “I want to thank President Trump, AG Bondi, and Director Patel for the opportunity to serve with purpose. Most importantly, I want to thank you, my fellow Americans, for the privilege to serve you. God bless America, and all those who defend Her.”

The announcement caps a day of speculation on when Bongino would leave, with four sources telling The Post that Bongino’s departure was expected soon.

President Trump later confirmed on Wednesday that Bongino is heading for the exits after joining the administration in March.

“Dan did a great job. I think he wants to go back to his show,” Trump said of the former TV host.

Bongino, 51, was reportedly already packing up his office, with one source telling the Post that the former media personality would serve only one year in his role under Director Kash Patel.

Bongino previously considered quitting in July after a heated exchange with Attorney General Pam Bondi at the White House over her handling of documents pertaining to notorious late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, with Bondi initially stating in a public memo that “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.”

Prior to taking office, Bongino promoted conspiracy theories involving Epstein, including suggesting that he may have been murdered, before this year affirming the official account that he died by suicide in 2019.

Bondi’s memo assessed that there was no “evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.”


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It’s unclear what Bongino intends to do next career-wise, but two sources said they believe he’s likely to return to his pre-government role as a political commentator.

A different source said that it’s understood that Bongino’s co-deputy director Andrew Bailey, who gained his position in September, will take on the full traditional duties of the deputy role.

Bailey was Missouri attorney general between 2023 and 2025 and helped lead a failed Supreme Court challenge to federal pressure on social media companies to censor alleged disinformation, which supporters had hoped would produce a landmark First Amendment ruling.

FBI deputy directors typically manage day-to-day operations in the bureau — with the Biden-era deputy director Paul Abbate wielding such significant influence that some insiders viewed then-Director Christopher Wray as a mere figurehead.

An FBI spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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