(CNN)- The newly elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced this Saturday that he intends to select Kash Patel as the next director of the FBI.
Current FBI Director Christopher Wray would have to resign or be fired to clear the position. Wray was appointed by Trump in 2017 and has three years left on his 10-year term.
“I am proud to announce that Kashyap ‘Kash’ Patel will be the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). “Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator and ‘America First’ fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending justice, and protecting the American people,” Trump posted on Truth Social this Saturday night.
“I look forward to working under our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to restore integrity, courage and integrity to the FBI,” Trump said.
Trump appointed Wray in 2017 after firing James Comey, but he became disillusioned with Wray before leaving office in 2021. Trump’s opinion of the FBI worsened when his Mar-a-Lago resort was raided in August 2022 and Trump was later impeached for allegedly withholding classified documents.
Even among Trump loyalists, Patel is widely seen as a controversial figure and tireless self-promoter whose value largely stems from a shared disdain for the so-called “Deep State.”
Patel rose to prominence in Trump’s circle in 2018, when she served as an aide to Rep. Devin Nunes, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee at the time. Patel played a key role in Nunes’ efforts to discredit the FBI’s Russia investigation into the Trump campaign, including a controversial classified memo that accused Trump advisers of FBI abuse of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act orders.
In 2019, Patel worked for Trump on the National Security Council before becoming chief of staff to the acting Secretary of Defense at the end of Trump’s first term.
When Trump considered firing then-CIA Director Gina Haspel after the 2020 election while insisting on releasing more information about the Russia investigation, Patel was considered as a possible replacement.
Although that never happened, Patel remained a constant figure in Trump’s circle, although his closeness to the president-elect fluctuated.
Mixed opinions about Patel emerged among people close to Trump during the transition process as he was advanced to the CIA director position, a role he had actively campaigned for, sources said.
This story has been updated with additional information.