Who Is Lee Zeldin? Possibly Trump’s Next Attorney General

Lee Zeldin, currently the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, could become the next head of the Department of Justice, the New York Times and CNN reported, should President Donald Trump fire Attorney General Pam Bondi, as he has privately discussed doing, multiple sources familiar with the matter told the news outlets.

Trump has reportedly mused about dismissing Bondi since January after blowback against her department’s handling of the Epstein files, documents related to the investigation into convicted sex offender and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Discussions of replacing Bondi reportedly re-emerged this week. Bondi faces a deposition before the congressional House oversight Committee later this month related to the Epstein investigation and transparency of the files.

Still, sources told the outlets that it is not yet certain Trump will fire Bondi. The President has publicly expressed confidence in Bondi on multiple occasions, and he said in a statement to the media on Wednesday in response to reports of her possible ouster that “Attorney General Pam Bondi is a wonderful person and she is doing a good job.”

If Bondi is removed, Trump has not finalized his decision to pick Zeldin as her replacement, the Times and CNN reported. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, sources told ABC. But Zeldin’s name has come up the most often in discussions of candidates for the role, CNN reported.

TIME has reached out to the White House for comment.

Here’s what to know about Zeldin.

Trump loyalist

Zeldin has been criticized by environmental and public health advocates, including leaders of the Make America Healthy Again movement, for undermining the EPA’s mission, and he faced scrutiny during his confirmation over his consulting work for a Qatari-led firm linked to the felony corruption case against former Sen. Bob Menendez (D, N.J.).

TIME has reached out to the EPA for comment.

From New York, Zeldin has a background in law, becoming in 2004 the youngest attorney at the time in the state at age 23. He ran a crisis management and public relations firm from 2023 to early 2025.

Also an army veteran, Zeldin served 22 years in the military, including military intelligence and a deployment to Iraq in 2006. He also held a state senate seat in New York from 2011 to 2014 and a U.S. congressional seat representing the state’s 1st District from 2015 to 2023. He unsuccessfully ran for New York governor in 2022, losing to Democrat Kathy Hochul.