Julianne Murray is out as acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware.
The former state GOP Chair announced she is resigning via social media Friday. She has served as both interim and acting U.S. Attorney for Delaware since being appointed by President Trump and sworn in last summer.
Benjamin Wallace was named by the courts to replace Murray. Wallace has been a prosecutor in Delaware U.S Attorney’s office for three years and First Deputy for the past six months, Murray said she supports that choice in her resignation.
Questions have been raised about the legality of Murray's appointment as "interim" and "acting" U.S. Attorney and federal courts elsewhere have struck down similar U.S. Attorney appointments by the Trump administration.
Murray cited a recent Third Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling that President Trump’s pick for acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey was unlawfully installed. The Third Circuit also covers Delaware.
Murray also cited politics for her decision, chastising Senators Chris Coons and Lisa Blunt Rochester for not supporting her through the Senate’s ‘blue slip’ appointment tradition.
In a statement Friday, Coons said he had interviewed Murray and didn't feel she was the right person to lead that office.
Murray was considering a second gubernatorial run last year after losing to former Gov. John Carney in 2020 but ultimately reconsidered when former House Republican Leader Mike Ramone announced his candidacy.
She also ran for state attorney general in 2022 but lost to current Attorney General Kathy Jennings with 46% of the vote.
In her resignation Friday, Murray said plans to continue serving the U.S Dept. of Justice in a different capacity
