Postmaster General Louis Dejoy Says It's Time To Find His Replacement

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is planning his exit as the leader of the U.S. Postal Service, a closing chapter to his contentious four-plus year tenure at the agency.

In a letter released by the USPS on Tuesday, DeJoy asked the agency's board of governors to begin the process in identifying his successor.

“While there remains much critical work to be done to ensure that the Postal Service can be financially viable as we continue to serve the nation in our essential public service mission, I have decided it is time to start the process of identifying my successor and of preparing the Postal Service for this change,” DeJoy said in a statement.

The statement did not say when DeJoy plans to step down.

DeJoy — who has led USPS since June 2020 — has ruffled feathers on both sides of the aisle. Last year, DeJoy was criticized by both Republicans and Democrats for blocking lawmakers from visiting U.S. postal facilities. Democrats were also sharply critical over how DeJoy led the agency during the pandemic, including clashes over the deliverability of mail ballots in 2020.

DeJoy was a prominent fundraiser for President Donald Trump, which led some Democrats to call for his ouster under former President Joe Biden. While the president doesn’t appoint the postmaster, DeJoy’s departure grants Trump an opportunity to influence the leadership of an agency that’s crucial to the country’s everyday life.

USPS is about four years into DeJoy’s 10-year plan to reduce costs by billions of dollars annually as part of an effort to improve the agency’s long-term financial stability.