Trump's White House Hit by First High-Profile Resignation After Midterm Election Defeat — as Administration Braces for Major Staff Exodus
Harmeet Dhillon resigned as assistant attorney general for civil rights.
Nov. 6 2026, Published 12:11 p.m. ET
Harmeet Dhillon resigned on November 5 as head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, RadarOnline can report.
She is the first senior Trump administration official to depart following Republicans’ major losses in the midterm elections.
Her Resignation Isn’t Sudden
Dhillon said she submitted her resignation three weeks before the election.
“Today, I accepted the resignation of Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who led the Civil Rights Division with conviction the past 18 months," U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said earlier this week. "She has defended the civil liberties of every American and enforced the law without fear or favor. The Department is grateful for her dedicated public service, and we wish her every success in her future endeavors.”
Dhillon served about 18 to 19 months after taking the post in April 2025 and is expected to return to her California-based Dhillon Law Group.
In a recent interview, she told Fox News she resigned voluntarily three weeks before the midterms and delayed the announcement at the request of White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
However, she clarified that she was not asked to resign.
The New York Times reported that her departure also followed internal conflicts with DOJ leadership and White House annoyance over a 60 Minutes appearance in which she downplayed the prevalence of undocumented immigrants voting.
Push to Dismantle DEI
Under Dhillon, the division moved from its traditional anti-discrimination mission toward challenges to DEI.
Dhillon, a former Republican Party official who represented Trump’s 2024 campaign, shifted the division’s priorities toward conservative causes, including challenges to DEI initiatives, investigations of alleged antisemitism on campuses and promotion of gun rights.
The New York Times described the unit – originally created to address Jim Crow injustices – as having been repurposed under her leadership.
She oversaw lawsuits against universities over antisemitism and race-based practices following the Supreme Court’s affirmative-action ruling, and directed election-integrity efforts.
Staff Exodus and Election Litigation
Nearly 70 percent of the Civil Rights Division’s workforce left during her tenure.
Her tenure prompted a mass departure of career employees.
The New York Post reported nearly 70 percent of the workforce left, while The Daily Mail reported more than three-quarters of the division’s lawyers departed. Dhillon previously called it “the biggest single personnel self-purge in DOJ history” and said some departing staff “had crying sessions together” and “unhappy hours.”
Her team helped develop pre-election lawsuits seeking to impound ballots in California and block certification of an Alaska Senate race, though neither she nor her senior staff signed the filings or appeared in court.
'Destructive, Lawless and Hateful'
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Former officials called her leadership the most destructive in the division’s history.
There were reports of strained relations with Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. and that Dhillon had pushed for his removal after former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s firing.
Former DOJ officials accused her of undermining the division’s traditional mission.
Stacey Young of the Justice Connection said, “Harmeet Dhillon has been the most destructive, lawless, and hateful head of the Civil Rights Division in DOJ history.”
Kristen Clarke, who led the division under Joe Biden, said, “From Day 1, Harmeet Dhillon abdicated her responsibility to enforce our nation’s federal civil rights laws and destroyed the crown jewel of the Justice Department.”
Democrats are expected to investigate the division’s actions, staffing losses and related immigration and civil-rights matters with their new congressional majorities.
Speculation has also grown about other potential administration departures.
