The Trump administration has removed the acting leader of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and replaced her with a 30-year agency veteran who has held senior positions under several administrations.
The departure of Karen Evans, a political appointee who led FEMA since December, was disclosed Tuesday in a memo to FEMA staff that was obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News. It marked the third time that FEMA’s acting administrator had been replaced since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. That tempestuous period had been marked by agency firings, canceled grant programs and Trump’s threats to disband an agency that provides billions of dollars in disaster aid to states every year.
“I know this year has been challenging for many across the agency,” Robert Fenton, Evans’ temporary replacement, wrote in the staff memo Tuesday.
Evans couldn’t be reached for comment, but a FEMA spokesperson said she has been asked to lead special projects at the Department of Homeland Security as director of the so-called Waste, Fraud and Abuse Task Force.
“We are grateful for Ms. Evans’ service and look forward to her continued contributions in this important new role at DHS,” the spokesperson said. The agency removed her name from its Offices & Leadership webpage, which now lists Fenton as acting administrator.
The change comes as Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin asserts control over an agency that saw leaders come and go under his predecessor, Kristi Noem, who was fired in March. On Monday, President Donald Trump nominated Cameron Hamilton to lead FEMA, making him the first permanent administrator in Trump’s second term, if he’s confirmed by the Senate.
Hamilton was acting FEMA chief from January 2025 to May 2025, when he was fired. He returned to FEMA recently, the agency told E&E News, when he was appointed senior counselor to Mullin.
The reshuffling at FEMA’s highest levels comes weeks before hurricane season begins, marking one of its busiest periods.
Fenton, who runs the FEMA regional office in California, has previously served as acting administrator during transition periods between administrations. Now he will play the role of placeholder until Hamilton’s nomination is voted on by the Senate. Fenton is highly regarded by FEMA staff and among emergency managers nationwide. He has led the agency’s response to some of the most damaging disasters in U.S. history, including wildfires in Los Angeles in January 2025 and in Hawaii in 2023.
“I’ve supported and led disaster operations across the country,” Fenton wrote in his staff memo. “I will lead FEMA and support Cameron Hamilton as he proceeds through the Senate confirmation process.”
Trump had named Fenton last year to the FEMA Review Council, an expert panel that released a report last week with recommendations for overhauling the agency.
Fenton, the only nonpolitical member of the 12-person council, echoed Trump’s criticisms of FEMA as being too slow and bureaucratic. He told the panel in May 2025, “Things that used to take me a month or two to do now take 18 months.”
Fenton appeared to have good relations with Hamilton, during the brief period of Hamilton’s leadership.
“Bob was excellent. I love Bob,” Hamilton told podcast host John Scardena in a long interview in September. “My nickname for Bob was El Jefe. He was the man, the myth, the legend. Bob is truly remarkable.”
Fenton wrote in his memo Tuesday that he “will listen and work to be accessible to you so your voice can help inform our path forward.”
The FEMA spokesperson said Fenton’s “deep expertise” in disaster response and planning “will help guide FEMA” during the upcoming hurricane season, World Cup matches in the U.S. and celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary.
Evans is a longtime federal employee who held political jobs in the first Trump administration and under former President George W. Bush. She joined FEMA in July as a senior adviser in the administrators’ office after working as executive assistant director for cybersecurity at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which is part of DHS, according to her official biography.
In the months before departing FEMA, she had become ensnared in a lawsuit over the administration’s decision against renewing the contracts of about 200 temporary agency employees in January. The suit was filed in California by federal labor unions and advocacy groups.
The case has generated extensive discovery, including an April deposition of Evans in which she said she used her personal cellphone to conduct agency business. The case file also includes a February 2025 “Dear Colleague” letter from DHS Deputy Chief Information Officer Chris Bartz stating in bold type, “Only use DHS devices for official business.” Signal deletes messages automatically, potentially depriving the federal government of communications that are required to be archived.
Evans said in her deposition that she communicated with Noem and her advisers Corey Lewandowski and Kara Voorhies using Signal.
A filing submitted by the administration in the case Thursday appears to confirm that Evans has not been at FEMA headquarters in Washington. It says that a Justice Department attorney and support staff “traveled from the Washington, DC area to Ms. Evans’ home in Martinsburg, WV, and began the process this morning of collecting the documents ordered to be produced by the Court.”
Evans was FEMA’s chief of staff before becoming acting administrator; she held both positions since December. The agency now has openings at key positions, including chief of staff, deputy administrator or deputy chief of staff, according to its website.
