Less than 24 hours after Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration for attorney general, President-elect Donald Trump announced former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as his nominee to lead the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans. Not anymore. Pam will refocus the DOJ on its intended purpose of fighting crime and making America safe again," Trump stated on Truth Social. "I’ve known Pam for many years—she’s smart, tough, and an AMERICA FIRST fighter who will do a terrific job as Attorney General!”

Bondi served as Florida’s attorney general from 2011 to 2019. In 2020, she was a senior adviser during Trump’s first impeachment trial, and by 2024, she led the Center for Litigation at the America First Policy Institute, a think tank aligned with Trump’s agenda.

After her tenure as Florida AG, Bondi joined Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm tied to Brian Ballard, a prominent Trump fundraiser. While at the firm, Bondi worked as a registered lobbyist for Qatar. She was also part of Trump’s legal defense team during his 2020 Senate impeachment trial.

Bondi’s career has been shadowed by fundraising controversies. In 2013, the Donald J. Trump Foundation donated $25,000 to Bondi’s re-election campaign while her office was reviewing fraud claims against Trump University. Shortly after receiving the donation, Bondi declined to pursue an investigation. Trump aides later characterized the payment as an error, raising questions about potential violations of federal rules prohibiting charities from supporting political candidates.