FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey announced on September 28 that he is stepping down after just over a year, leaving the most prominent US law enforcement agency to return to his family in Missouri.

Bailey, a former Missouri attorney general and a Republican ally of President Donald Trump, said he was leaving for personal reasons. “With great pride in what we have accomplished, I am announcing that I am stepping down to return to my family in Missouri,” he wrote on social media.

Serving under Director Kash Patel, Bailey helped oversee election-related investigations and was present in January when agents seized 2020 election ballots from Georgia. He initially served alongside Dan Bongino, who left in January, with veteran agent Christopher Raia later joining the leadership team.

Patel thanked Bailey for his “dedicated service” and reforms. The deputy post, once traditionally apolitical and held by career officials, has become one of the most politically scrutinized jobs in federal law enforcement.