Indian-American DOJ civil rights chief Harmeet Dhillon resigns after GOP midterm setback

Harmeet K Dhillon, an Indian-American lawyer who led a major shift in the US Justice Department's civil rights enforcement priorities under President Donald Trump, has resigned from her position, Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on Thursday.Dhillon's departure comes two days after Democrats regained control of both chambers of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections.

She is among the first senior officials to leave the administration following the Republican losses.As head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, Dhillon oversaw changes to an agency traditionally responsible for enforcing voting rights protections and investigating racial discrimination.

Under her leadership, the division redirected its attention towards challenging diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes, examining alleged antisemitism on university campuses and pursuing cases involving gun rights.The shift triggered departures among career attorneys, several of whom left the division amid disagreements over its new direction.