President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday tapped former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as his new pick for U.S. attorney general.

The announcement — made in a post on Trump’s social media site Truth Social — came just hours after the president-elect’s first choice for attorney general, former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration for the job.

Gaetz had faced mounting scrutiny over years-old allegations of sex trafficking and drug use that put his confirmation by the U.S. Senate in question.

In announcing Bondi as his new choice to lead the Justice Department, Trump praised the former Florida attorney general as “very tough” on crime, especially when it comes to drug trafficking.

“For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans — Not anymore,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Pam will refocus the DOJ to its intended purpose of fighting Crime, and Making America Safe Again. I have known Pam for many years — She is smart and tough, and is an AMERICA FIRST Fighter, who will do a terrific job as Attorney General!”

Bondi did not immediately respond to The Miami Herald’s request for comment on Thursday evening.

Like Gaetz, Bondi has deep ties to Trump. But she is a far-more conventional choice for attorney general than the former congressman, having served two terms as Florida’s top law enforcement official from 2011 until 2019.

Bondi emerged as an avid supporter of the former and future president during his 2016 presidential bid. During a speech at the Republican National Convention that year, Bondi led chants of “lock her up,” referring to then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

Bondi also served on Trump’s defense team during his first impeachment trial in 2019 when he was charged with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The U.S. Senate eventually acquitted Trump on both charges.

Bondi rushed to Trump’s defense again in 2020 during his push to overturn the results of that year’s presidential election. Speaking at a news conference in Philadelphia at the time, Bondi claimed that Trump had won Pennsylvania when, in fact, the state ultimately went for President Joe Biden.

After finishing her second term as Florida attorney general, Bondi joined the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, leading the firm’s Corporate Regulatory Compliance practice — a role in which she lobbied the federal government. She also currently helms the legal arm of the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute, a right-wing think tank with ties to the president-elect’s orbit.

Bondi’s ties to Trump have come under scrutiny in the past. She and Trump faced a bribery complaint in 2016 stemming from a 2013 donation Trump’s charity made to a political committee supporting Bondi’s campaign for attorney general. The $25,000 donation landed around the same time Bondi’s staff reviewed a complaint about Trump University, a now-defunct business venture operated by the president-elect’s company.

Bondi’s office was not involved in an active investigation into Trump University at the time. She staunchly denied suggestions of wrongdoing, arguing that she would “never let money from anyone” influence her official actions.

Prosecutors with Florida’s 20th Judicial Circuit ultimately determined that the bribery complaint lacked enough evidence to move forward.

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