The White House has nominated Michael LoSapio, the chief information security officer at Palantir Technologies, to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Department of Homeland Security unit that defends civilian federal networks and much of the country's critical infrastructure. The nomination was announced on Monday, November 9.
If confirmed by the Senate, LoSapio would take over an agency that has been without a permanent, Senate-confirmed director for nearly 22 months, since Jen Easterly stepped down in January 2025. The agency is currently led by acting director Nick Andersen.
A long vacancy at the top
CISA has operated without a Senate-confirmed leader throughout the current administration's second term. The previous nominee, Sean Plankey, withdrew from consideration in April after his confirmation stalled for months, with Senator Ron Wyden holding up the process over an unreleased report on telecommunications cybersecurity. In the meantime the agency has been run by a series of acting officials, including Bridget Bean until May 2025 and Madhu Gottumukkala until February 2026.
The vacancy has stretched across a period of deep change at the agency, including workforce cuts and a reorganisation of its work. Lawmakers and industry groups have pressed for permanent leadership as cyber threats against American networks have continued to grow.
Who is Michael LoSapio?
LoSapio has served as Palantir's chief information security officer since September 2024, according to his LinkedIn profile. Before that, he led the company's infrastructure and network security group from 2017 to 2024, and joined Palantir as a systems engineer in 2013.
His background sits squarely in the private-sector security world, and his nomination would put a senior executive from one of the government's biggest software contractors in line to run the agency that oversees the security of federal civilian systems. LoSapio did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported.
A crowded path to confirmation
The nomination now goes to the Senate, where it faces a crowded calendar, with lawmakers working to fund the government and pass defence legislation before the year ends. If the Senate does not confirm LoSapio before the current Congress ends, the White House would have to nominate him again for consideration by the incoming Democratic majority.
The pick also arrives as CISA's role continues to be debated in Washington, with the agency rebuilding after staffing cuts and refocusing its mission. Whoever takes the helm will inherit an agency whose work spans election security, ransomware response and the defence of water, power and telecom networks — and a workforce still adjusting to the cuts and restructuring of the past two years.
