FBI Co Deputy Director Andrew Bailey has announced that he will leave the bureau after a little more than a year, saying he plans to return to his family. His departure comes weeks before the US midterm elections and after a tenure that included involvement in several election related investigations.
By Open Chronicle with agencies | September 29, 2026
WASHINGTON — FBI Co Deputy Director Andrew Bailey said Monday that he is resigning from his position after a little more than a year at the bureau, marking another significant change within the leadership of the United States’ most prominent federal law enforcement agency.
Bailey, a Republican ally of President Donald Trump who previously served as Missouri attorney general, said he was leaving the FBI to return to his family.
During his time at the bureau, Bailey served under FBI Director Kash Patel and played a role in overseeing investigations involving elections and voting.
“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 on social media.
Bailey leaves senior FBI leadership
The deputy director position carries substantial responsibility within the FBI, including oversight of the bureau’s daily law enforcement operations.
Historically, the position has generally been occupied by career FBI officials and treated as an operational role largely insulated from partisan politics.
Bailey’s appointment represented a departure from that tradition.
He left his position as Missouri attorney general to join the bureau as the Trump administration moved to reshape its senior leadership.
Bailey initially served as co deputy director alongside Dan Bongino, a former US Secret Service agent and conservative podcaster.
Bongino left the FBI in January.
Three person leadership structure
More recently, veteran FBI official Christopher Raia has served as part of a three person senior leadership team alongside Bailey and Patel.
Raia brought extensive career FBI experience to a leadership structure that otherwise included two prominent Trump allies.
Bailey’s departure will therefore create another change within a bureau that has undergone substantial leadership turnover.
No immediate successor was identified in the information provided.
Election investigations became part of Bailey’s tenure
Bailey played a role in managing election related investigations during his time at the FBI.
Earlier this year, he was present when federal agents seized ballots from the 2020 election in Georgia.
The FBI has also examined election records from several states as federal authorities investigate questions surrounding voting and election administration.
According to the information provided, those investigations have not produced evidence substantiating Trump’s claims that widespread voter fraud caused his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.
The Trump administration has also mobilized federal law enforcement agencies to investigate voting by people who are not US citizens.
Departure comes weeks before midterm elections
The timing of Bailey’s resignation is particularly notable because it comes approximately five weeks before the US midterm elections.
Those elections will determine control of Congress and are taking place as election security and voting procedures remain politically contentious issues in the United States.
Federal law enforcement involvement in election related investigations is consequently receiving heightened scrutiny.
Bailey’s departure removes one of the senior officials who had been involved in overseeing some of those investigations.
Patel continues FBI overhaul
Bailey joined the FBI during a period of significant institutional change under Patel.
The bureau has been undergoing an overhaul as the Trump administration seeks changes in leadership, priorities and accountability within federal law enforcement.
Bailey expressed confidence that Patel would continue that process after his departure.
His statement specifically cited violent crime, homeland defence, organizational accountability and restoring public trust as priorities he expects the FBI director to pursue.
Epstein files created political controversy
Bailey’s arrival at the FBI also followed controversies surrounding Patel’s early leadership of the bureau.
Among them was the handling of investigative material connected with Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier and convicted sex offender.
The handling of those files generated political difficulties for the Trump administration and contributed to tensions within the Justice Department, according to the information provided.
The controversy formed part of a turbulent period for senior FBI leadership as the administration attempted to implement broader changes across federal law enforcement.
Another leadership change at the FBI
Bailey’s resignation adds to a series of changes at the upper levels of the bureau.
Bongino’s departure in January had already altered the unusual co deputy director structure established earlier in the administration.
With Bailey now preparing to leave, Patel and Raia remain central figures in the bureau’s leadership.
The transition also comes at a sensitive moment for the FBI, with the bureau involved in politically significant election investigations while preparing for a national vote that will determine the balance of power in Congress.
Bailey has framed his decision as a personal one, saying he intends to return to his family.
His departure nevertheless represents another important leadership transition for an FBI undergoing substantial institutional and political change.