Pamela Jo Bondi (born November 17, 1965) is an American attorney, lobbyist, and politician who has served as the 87th United States attorney general since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, she served as Florida attorney general from 2011 to 2019, the first woman elected to the office.
Pamela Jo Bondi[4] was born on November 17, 1965. Her hometown is Temple Terrace, Florida. Her father, Joseph Bondi, was a city council member and then mayor of Temple Terrace. She is a graduate of C. Leon King High School in Tampa.[5]
Bondi ran for Florida attorney general in the 2010 election, facing off against former state representative Holly Benson and lieutenant governor Jeff Kottkamp in the Republican primary. In a competitive field, Bondi notably received the support of former governor of Alaska Sarah Palin. The Palm Beach Post credited her surge in support in the primary to her media-savviness, including regular appearances on Fox News and her public association with Sean Hannity.
Polling conducted by Mason Dixon in August 2010 found her leading both Benson and Kottkamp in the primary. She ultimately won the primary with 37.89% of the vote.[13] In the general election, she faced Democratic nominee Dan Gelber, a former prosecutor who spent 10 years in the state legislature.[14] She ultimately comfortably defeated Gelber to become the state's first female attorney general.[15][16]
In 2018, Bondi joined with 19 other Republican-led states in a lawsuit to overturn the ACA's bans on health insurance companies charging people with pre-existing conditions higher premiums or denying them coverage outright.[22]
Bondi defended Amendment 2, a 2008 amendment to the Florida Constitution banning same-sex marriage, against legal challenges on behalf of the state. Bondi claimed that these actions did not reflect her opinions on same-sex marriage, but were out of respect for the constitution.[23] Following the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting in June 2016, Bondi was interviewed by CNN reporter Anderson Cooper, who said that Bondi's expression of support for the LGBT community was at odds with her past record.[23][24][25] Cooper said that Bondi was "either mistaken or not telling the truth," while Bondi accused Cooper of fomenting "anger and hate."[24]
In August 2018, while still serving as Florida attorney general, Bondi co-hosted The Five on Fox News three days in a row while also appearing on Sean Hannity's Fox News show.[26] Fox News claimed that the Florida Commission on Ethics had approved Bondi's appearance on the program; however, the spokeswoman for the commission denied that, telling the Tampa Bay Times that no decision was made by the commission and that the commission's general counsel did not make a determination whether or not Bondi's appearance as a host violated the Florida Code of Ethics. The Tampa Bay Times described it as "unprecedented" for a sitting elected official to host a TV show.[26]
Bondi with members of the Florida cabinet in 2014
In nominating her to be U.S. attorney general, Trump said that, as Florida's attorney general, she had "worked to stop the trafficking of deadly drugs, and reduce the tragedy of Fentanyl Overdose Deaths, which have destroyed many families across our Country," and that she had done "an incredible job".[27] In fact, however, Florida's age-adjusted rate of "deaths from drug poisoning" nearly doubled during her term, from 13.7 per 100,000 residents in 2011 to 25.1 when she left office in 2019.[28]
Fundraising controversies
Beginning in 2010, Bondi's association with Scientology and the multiple fundraisers that wealthy Scientologists have organized for Bondi's political campaigns have provoked controversy.[29] Bondi has justified those contacts and her speeches before leading Scientologists by arguing that the group wishes to help her crack down on human trafficking.[30][31]
In 2011, Bondi also pressured two attorneys to resign who were investigating Lender Processing Services, a financial services company now known as Black Knight, following the robosigning scandal, as part of their work for Florida's Economic Crime Division. After the resignations, Bondi received campaign contributions from Lender Processing Services, though she denied any quid pro quo.[32][33]
In 2013, Bondi persuaded Governor Rick Scott to postpone a scheduled execution because it conflicted with a fundraising event.[34] After questions were raised in the media, Bondi apologized for moving the execution date.[35][36]
Trump donation to Bondi PAC
In 2013, Bondi also received criticism following a campaign donation from Donald Trump.[37] Prior to the donation, Bondi had received at least 22 fraud complaints regarding Trump University. A spokesperson for Bondi announced that her office was considering joining a lawsuit initiated by Eric Schneiderman, the attorney general of New York, regarding tax fraud potential charges against Trump.[38][39] Four days later And Justice for All, a political action committee established by Bondi to support her re-election, received a $25,000 donation from the Donald J. Trump Foundation. Bondi subsequently declined to join the lawsuit against Trump University. Both Bondi and Trump have defended the propriety of the donation.[40][41]
In 2016, after Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service regarding the donation, the Trump Foundation stated that it had been made in error, intending for the donation to go to Bondi's unrelated Kansas non-profit Justice for All.[42][43] In June 2016, as Bondi was facing renewed criticism over the issue, her spokesman said that Bondi had solicited the donation directly from Trump several weeks before her office announced it was considering joining the lawsuit.[39][44] On March 14, 2016, Bondi endorsed Trump in the 2016 Florida Republican presidential primary, saying she had been friends with him for many years.[45][46] In June 2016, a spokesperson for Governor Rick Scott stated that the state's ethics commission was looking into the matter.[47]
In September 2016, the IRS determined that the donation to Bondi's PAC violated laws against political contributions from nonprofit organizations, and ordered Trump to pay a fine for the contribution. Trump was also required to reimburse the foundation for the sum that had been donated to Bondi.[48] Neither Bondi nor her PAC were fined or criminally charged. In November 2019, Trump was ordered by a New York state court to close down the foundation and pay $2 million in damages for misusing it, including the illegal donation to Bondi.[49]
In 2021, The Daily Beast reported that it had obtained records relating to Trump's illegal donation to Bondi that show that Trump's organization knew that the money was being given to a PAC in Florida rather than to a Kansas non-profit. The records include an email in August 2013 from Bondi's campaign finance director Deborah Ramsey Aleksander to Trump's executive assistant, Rhona Graff, identifying the PAC as an Electioneering Communications Organization and thanking Graff for meeting with her and for the promised $25,000 donation. A CREW spokesperson called these documents "a smoking gun" suggesting the allegations were true.[50]
Return to private life
Lobbyist work
Bondi in 2018
In 2019, after her final term as Florida attorney general, Bondi was hired by Ballard Partners, a firm with close ties to Trump, and she began working as a registered foreign agent as a lobbyist for the Embassy of the State of Qatar. She registered as a foreign agent for the Embassy of the State of Qatar and as a partner in the lobbyist firm of Ballard Partners under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.[51][52] She left the Qatari project in 2019 to work in a temporary position for the White House Counsel for President Trump's first impeachment proceedings.[53] Bondi worked as a lobbyist at Ballard Partners until as late as 2024.[54][55]
As a partner at Ballard Partners, she also become a lobbyist for KGL KSCC, a company incorporated in Kuwait.[56][57] The KGL KSCC lobbying activity was, according to the filed federal lobbying report, for "issues related to potential Global Magnitsky Act violations and imprisonment".[58][59] The Global Magnitsky Act is a law which allows the U.S. government to sanction government officials implicated in human rights abuses or extreme corruption anywhere in the world. Bondi was lobbying for the Kuwait company to help with a case of claimed extortion.[60][61] She had reported on her federal lobbying forms that she had a member of the 2017 Presidential Transition Team of the first Trump administration.[62]
During the course of the impeachment trial, Bondi made[72]allegations that former Vice PresidentJoe Biden and his son Hunter were involved in corruption in Ukraine, stemming from the younger Biden's position on board of Burisma Holdings. It was also revealed that Lev Parnas, a businessman with close ties to Rudy Giuliani and Ukraine, had several meetings with Bondi in 2018 while she was the Florida attorney general, and after she left office in 2019.[73][74] In 2019, Parnas was arrested and accused of illegally funneling foreign money from Ukrainians and Russians to Republican politicians, particularly in Florida, where he lived.[75][76][77][78]
In an appearance on Fox News on November 5, 2020, host Steve Doocy challenged Bondi to provide evidence for her claims of fraud, which she refused to do.[84] Bondi later claimed that Trump had won Pennsylvania, despite votes there still being counted, with his opponent Joe Biden ultimately winning the state.[83]
Board of Trustees and U.S. political advocacy work
By 2024, Bondi led the legal arm of the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute, a nonprofit that planned policies for a potential second Trump presidency. She worked to file voting lawsuits in battleground states relating to the 2024 presidential election.[87]
Attorney General of the United States (2025–present)
Nomination and confirmation
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: More information regarding her hearing is needed such as dates of hearings. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(February 2025)
On November21, 2024, president-elect Trump announced she would be nominated for United States attorney general, after the withdrawal of Matt Gaetz for that position.[88][89][90] On January 29, 2025, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved her nomination in a 12–10 vote, with all Democrats opposing her nomiantion.[91] She was confirmed in a 54–46 Senate vote on February 4, 2025.[92] The only Democratic Senator who voted "aye" was Senator John Fetterman.[93] She was sworn in the following day by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.[3][94]
Concerns about possible conflict of interest
In presenting information to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Bondi's work as a lobbyist was not presented to the committee. According to the committee website, Bondi did not present the following issues pertaining to her work as a partner with Ballard Partners:[95]
Bondi was a lobbyist for The GEO Group, a private prison company. The company is a government contractor for immigration detention facilities.[96][97] The company has received criticism for safety issues, health care, and management practices.[98][95][99]
The committee presented the question of why the above two lobbyist projects, The GEO Group and Qatar, were not reported as potential conflicts of interest.[95] However, Bondi's work as a lobbyist for KGL KSCC, a company incorporated in Kuwait, was not asked of her.[100] Bondi was lobbying for the Kuwaiti company to help with a case of claimed extreme extortion by the investment company as termed a cause for international sanctions by the Global Magnitsky Act.[101]
Personal life
Bondi is of Italian descent, with roots in Campania, Italy. [5] She married Garret Barnes in 1990; the couple divorced after 22 months of marriage. In 1996, Bondi married Scott Fitzgerald; they divorced in 2002.[102] She was engaged to Greg Henderson in 2012.[103]
Since 2017, she has been in a relationship with John Wakefield.[104]
^Eisler, Peter; Parker, Ned; Layne, Nathan; Tanfani, Joseph (December 2, 2024). "After Trump's win, his election denial movement marches on". Reuters. Retrieved January 20, 2025. Election deniers are also filling key roles in Trump's new administration. Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, a vocal supporter of Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 defeat, has been nominated as U.S. Attorney General.
* Ineligible to act as president • ** Ambiguity exists concerning eligibility to act as president • *** Vice President-elect succeeds to the Presidency under Section 3 of the 20th Amendment if the President-elect dies or acts as President if President-elect fails to qualify for the office or a President is not chosen when a contingent election is required by the 12th Amendment
▌2 Unknown (2 territories) An asterisk (*) indicates that the officeholder is serving in an acting capacity. State abbreviations link to position articles.
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