Politics

Trump announces departure of DOJ pardon attorney Ed Martin

Martin is leaving the Department of Justice to work on election-related legal efforts ahead of upcoming campaigns.

Updated Aug 24, 2026 · 00:33 UTC1 reports

The short version

President Donald Trump announced that Department of Justice pardon attorney Ed Martin is stepping down from his post.
Trump stated that Martin will transition to outside legal work focused on the upcoming midterm and 2028 presidential elections.
Martin's tenure followed previous roles in the administration, including serving as interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.
A successor for the pardon attorney position has not yet been named.

President Donald Trump announced that DOJ pardon attorney Ed Martin is leaving his role to focus on outside legal battles for upcoming midterm and presidential elections.[ABC News]
Martin previously served as interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia from January to May 2025, an appointment that ended after failing to secure sufficient Senate Republican support for confirmation.[ABC News]
The Washington, D.C., bar filed an ethics complaint against Martin in January 2026 alleging he attempted to halt an investigation into his conduct and threatened to pull federal funding from Georgetown University Law Center.[ABC News]
During his tenure, Martin suggested publicly that he would use the pardon attorney office to review clemency actions granted by former President Joe Biden to family members and staff.[ABC News]

It remains unannounced who will replace Martin as the Justice Department's pardon attorney and what specific organization will host his outside election legal work.[ABC News]