DOJ Civil Rights Chief Harmeet Dhillon, Who Oversaw Midterm Voting, Resigns

The assistant attorney general for civil rights, Harmeet Dhillon, has resigned from her position, the Justice Department announced Thursday. Ms. Dhillon recently oversaw what she called the largest poll monitoring operation in history as voters cast ballots in the midterms — an election that resulted in historic defeats for Republicans. Ms. Dhillon, who made a name for herself during the first Trump administration as a free speech litigator and an attorney who sued to block California pandemic-era regulations, joined the civil rights division as chief early last year. She took the lead on trying to roll back diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and affirmative action policies, and was the DOJ official who greenlit Texas’s 2025 redistricting measure that aimed to give Republicans five additional House seats. In a statement Thursday, Attorney General Todd Blanche said the DOJ was “grateful” for her work. He said she “defended the civil liberties of every American and enforced the law without fear or favor.” Ms. Dhillon did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the New York Sun. Ms. Dhillon is the highest-profile departure from the Trump administration in the wake of the midterm election losses that Republicans suffered on Tuesday, which saw both the House and Senate flip by significant margins. Ms. Dhillon was likely to be called to answer questions before Congress about her lawsuits against universities for alleged discrimination against Asian, white, Christian, and Jewish students. Some of those lawsuits led universities to reach settlements with the government. Ms. Dhillon was interested in becoming the U.S. Attorney General after the ouster of Attorney General Pam Bondi, though ultimately that position went to Mr. Blanche. Before the midterms, Ms. Dhillon promised to oversee the largest poll monitoring situation in American history, with around 1,000 DOJ lawyers and other staff members deployed to blue areas across the country. Several localities and counties refused to allow the monitors into polling places, stating that the officials would have to stay outside of the voting centers in accordance with local and state law.

DOJ Civil Rights Chief Harmeet Dhillon, Who Oversaw Midterm Voting, Resigns

DOJ Civil Rights Chief Harmeet Dhillon, Who Oversaw Midterm Voting, Resigns

More from the New York Sun

Melania Trump Praised by Russia, Ukraine for Successful Ceasefire

‘Gotta Serve Somebody’: Bob Dylan’s Devotional Journey Leads Him to Vatican for Meeting With Pope Leo

LIV Golf’s Collapse Leaves Trump Ally Bryson DeChambeau Searching for a Place To Play

Mississippi, Proving Liberals Wrong About Race and Voting, Poised To Elect First Black Senator Since Reconstruction

Russia Blamed for Growing Disruptions in Europe Targeting Everything From Freezers to Flights

In Richard Nelson’s Political Drama ‘We’ll See,’ the Apples Are Still Stewing Over You-Know-Who

Mansour Abbas’s ‘Bridge’ to Hamas

Elizabeth Holmes Finally Has a Product That Works — Maybe Too Well

More from the New York Sun

Melania Trump Praised by Russia, Ukraine for Successful Ceasefire

‘Gotta Serve Somebody’: Bob Dylan’s Devotional Journey Leads Him to Vatican for Meeting With Pope Leo

LIV Golf’s Collapse Leaves Trump Ally Bryson DeChambeau Searching for a Place To Play

Mississippi, Proving Liberals Wrong About Race and Voting, Poised To Elect First Black Senator Since Reconstruction

Russia Blamed for Growing Disruptions in Europe Targeting Everything From Freezers to Flights

In Richard Nelson’s Political Drama ‘We’ll See,’ the Apples Are Still Stewing Over You-Know-Who

Mansour Abbas’s ‘Bridge’ to Hamas

Elizabeth Holmes Finally Has a Product That Works — Maybe Too Well