Harmeet Dhillon poised to step down at DOJ

Harmeet Dhillon is preparing to leave her post overseeing the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, becoming the first senior DOJ official to depart following Democrats’ sweeping midterm victories.Two people familiar with the matter told the Washington Examiner that Dhillon had informed allies she planned to leave after the midterm elections. An announcement could come as early as Thursday.Dhillon and Justice Department spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment. Her anticipated departure would close a tenure marked by significant changes to the division’s priorities and personnel. Since winning Senate confirmation in April 2025, the longtime ally of President Donald Trump has emphasized religious liberty and gun rights, including by establishing a Second Amendment section.The changes have extended to the division’s workforce. Following an exodus of career lawyers, Dhillon brought in attorneys with conservative advocacy backgrounds to pursue cases involving voter rolls, immigration, and allegations of antisemitism at universities.Dhillon’s tenure has also included a more recent string of courtroom defeats in the department’s campaign to obtain states’ unredacted voter rolls. The DOJ fell to 0–27 in district court decisions on Oct. 23, when a Trump-appointed judge dismissed its lawsuit seeking Utah’s complete voter registration database.Her exit could precede a broader round of departures as the administration enters the final weeks of the year and the halfway point of Trump’s presidency. Former department officials said they expect additional senior political appointees to leave during the lame duck period.Dhillon would also become the second Senate-confirmed DOJ official to depart in recent weeks, following Patrick Davis, who resigned last month as head of the Office of Legislative Affairs.A former Republican Party official and Trump campaign lawyer, Dhillon has previously signaled an interest in returning to private practice at her California-based firm, Dhillon Law Group.During an August discussion with Bloomberg reporters and editors, she said she hoped to use her government experience to continue representing plaintiffs after leaving the department.“In terms of private practice, when the president is done with me, I loved being a lawyer in private practice,” Dhillon said.DEMOCRATS ALREADY RECRUITING STAFF AS LEFT-LEANING LAW FIRMS GEAR UP FOR TRUMP INVESTIGATIONSHer brother, Mandeep Singh Dhillon, has managed the firm during her government service. Dhillon said in August that the practice had become substantially smaller during her absence.A person familiar with her departure plans said returning to the firm remains a strong possibility.