Overview
- Meta confirmed Tuesday that Joel Kaplan, its chief global affairs officer, will remain through the November 3, 2026 midterm elections and depart sometime in 2027 after a transition period.
- Kaplan joined Facebook in 2011, rose to lead global policy and succeeded Nick Clegg as chief global affairs officer in January 2025, and spent more than 15 years shaping the company’s government strategy.
- Meta has begun redistributing Kaplan’s responsibilities to executives including Dina Powell McCormick, who will add external affairs to her portfolio, and C. J. Mahoney, who will absorb additional policy-related duties.
- Kaplan, a Republican and former Marine and Bush administration official, was a key conservative interlocutor in Washington and played a central role in policy shifts such as changes to fact-checking and political outreach.
- The handover comes as Meta faces intense regulatory and political scrutiny, so observers should watch how the split of duties influences Meta’s ties to policymakers and its approach to content and election policy.