FBI Deputy Director Andrew Bailey Steps Down After a Year

Andrew Bailey, one of the FBI's two deputy directors, announced Monday that he is stepping down after just over a year in the role and will return to Missouri to be with his family.

Bailey was appointed co-deputy director in August 2025, serving alongside Dan Bongino during a period of heightened friction between FBI and Justice Department leadership over the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. The arrangement was unusual: for years, the bureau had filled its No. 2 position with a single official.

A former attorney general of Missouri and a staunch Republican supporter of President Donald Trump, Bailey stayed on after Bongino announced his own departure. In January, the FBI brought in veteran agent Christopher Raia as an additional deputy director under Director Kash Patel.

In a post on X announcing his resignation, Bailey thanked Trump, Attorney General Todd Blanche and Patel for the chance to serve. He said he was leaving with pride in the bureau's accomplishments and expressed confidence that Patel would continue to reform the FBI, fight violent crime, defend the homeland, strengthen organizational accountability and restore public trust.

Patel, in a separate post, credited Bailey with dedicated service and with instituting critical reforms.

Bailey kept a low public profile during his tenure. He was present in January when agents carried out a search warrant at the main election facility in Fulton County, Georgia, as part of an FBI election fraud investigation.