Ed Martin leaves Justice Department for election legal work

Ed Martin, a Trump loyalist whose Justice Department tenure was marked by disputes over Jan. 6 prosecutions, internal investigations and public clashes, is leaving the administration to work on election-related legal efforts, President Donald Trump announced Friday.

“Ed Martin has been with me from the very beginning, and done an incredible job as an Attorney, Director of the Weaponization Working Group, and the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. He said Martin is “leaving to go outside to fight Legal Battles for the upcoming Midterm Election, and the Presidential Election of 2028.”

Martin reposted Trump’s announcement on X and wrote, “Proud to serve. Fight Fight Fight.” Todd Blanche also praised Martin on X, calling him “a patriot who loves this nation” and writing, “We look forward to seeing his future successes!”

Martin’s most recent role was pardon attorney at the Justice Department, an advisory post that involves reviewing clemency applications and making recommendations. Trump had previously appointed him interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia in January 2025, despite what NBC News described as a lack of prior prosecutorial experience.

His time in that office drew scrutiny almost immediately. Under Martin, more than a dozen probationary federal prosecutors who had handled investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol were fired, CBS News reported. NBC News reported that he also demoted other prosecutors and opened an investigation into the office’s handling of Capitol riot cases. CBS News reported that Martin ordered prosecutors to examine how some Jan. 6 defendants were charged with felony obstruction.

Trump chose Martin to serve permanently as the top federal prosecutor in Washington, but the nomination ran into resistance in the Republican-controlled Senate. Senators raised concerns about Martin’s advocacy for people who stormed the Capitol and his involvement in the “Stop the Steal” movement after Trump’s 2020 election loss. Trump withdrew the nomination in May 2025.

“If Mr. Martin were being put forth as a U.S. attorney for any district except the district where Jan. 6 happened, the protest happened, I’d probably support him, but not in this district,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., a key member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said at the time.

Trump later named Martin associate deputy attorney general, pardon attorney and head of a Justice Department “Weaponization Working Group” tasked with reviewing prosecutors who had pursued past investigations involving Trump and his allies. CBS News reported that Martin also served under then-Attorney General Pam Bondi in that role. NBC News reported that Martin was stripped of leadership of the group in February 2026.

CBS News reported that Martin drew criticism inside the department for frequently announcing investigative targets on social media, contrary to Justice Department guidance. Career lawyers blocked him from opening a criminal investigation into Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer over 2020 comments about conservative Supreme Court justices, sources told CBS News.

Martin also faced an ethics complaint from D.C.’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel after targeting Georgetown University Law Center. CBS News reported that he threatened to stop hiring the school’s graduates unless it abandoned diversity, equity and inclusion policies. The Justice Department later filed a statement of interest supporting Martin in that ethics case.

CBS News also reported that Martin was deputized as a special assistant U.S. attorney to help lead mortgage-related investigations into Sen. Adam Schiff, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook. The cases against Cook and Schiff have not materialized, CBS News reported. A judge dismissed an indictment against James, finding the interim U.S. attorney who secured it was unlawfully appointed; the Justice Department has appealed.

CBS News said it reached out to Martin for comment on his departure. An official close to Martin told the outlet that Martin and Blanche have mended their relationship after earlier tensions.