The Senate confirmed Jay Clayton as President Donald Trump's Director of National Intelligence on July 28, 2026, with a party-line vote of 51-47. In this role, Clayton will oversee the 18 intelligence agencies in the United States. Previously, he served as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and was chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Clayton's nomination faced criticism from Democrats, particularly regarding his responses to questions about election integrity during his confirmation hearings. He did not directly answer who won the 2020 election when asked by Senator Jon Ossoff.
His confirmation comes amid stalled negotiations to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which allows the NSA to collect foreign intelligence without a warrant but has raised concerns about the collection of Americans' communications.
Clayton replaces acting DNI Bill Pulte, who has been in the role since mid-June and has focused on declassifying documents related to foreign interference in the 2020 election and reducing staff at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.