US President-elect Donald Trump has named Pam Bondi as his nominee for attorney general, hours after Matt Gaetz, his first choice, withdrew from consideration.

If confirmed by the Senate, the role means Bondi would be in charge of the justice department and its roughly $45bn (£35.7bn) budget.

Once the first female attorney general of Florida, she would play a key role in defending any legal challenges to Trump policies and implementing his vow to remake the department.

Some consider Bondi, 59, a less controversial choice than Gaetz, who faced scrutiny over sexual misconduct allegations against him.

Gaetz has denied the claims but said he hoped to avoid a “needlessly protracted Washington scuffle” by withdrawing.

Announcing his selection, Trump wrote in a social media post: “For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans – Not anymore.

“Pam will refocus the DOJ to its intended purpose of fighting Crime, and Making America Safe Again. I have known Pam for many years – She is smart and tough, and is an AMERICA FIRST Fighter, who will do a terrific job as Attorney General!”

Bondi is a chair at America First Policy Institute, a conservative think tank founded by former Trump staff members, leading its legal arm. She has also served on Trump’s opioid and drug abuse commission.

Bondi, a longtime Trump ally, was part of his legal team during his first impeachment trial and when it made false claims that the 2020 election had been stolen from him due to voter fraud.

She also publicly supported him by showing up at court during his hush money trial in New York, which ended in May with a conviction of 34 counts of fraud.

Born in Tampa, Florida, Bondi studied criminal justice at the University of Florida in 1987, before going on to receive a professional degree from Stetson University College of Law three years later. She was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1991.

Before entering politics, Bondi spent more than 18 years as a prosecutor at the Hillsborough county state attorney’s office, trying cases “ranging from domestic violence to capital murder”, according to a profile on her lobbying firm’s website.

She was elected as Florida’s first female attorney general in 2010 – having won the support of former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin – zoning in on opioid abuse, synthetic drugs and human trafficking.

Bondi’s relationship with Trump goes back years. She has supported him since his 2016 election campaign and told voters at a recent rally that she considers him a “friend”.

In 2016, Trump and Bondi came under scrutiny over a $25,000 (£19,982) contribution he had made in 2013 to her re-election campaign for Florida attorney general.

The payment was made at a time when Bondi’s office was reportedly considering whether to open a fraud investigation into Trump University.

The fraud investigation never happened, although Bondi denied the decision was influenced by the donation she received.

Bondi has criticised the criminal cases against Trump and spoken out against Jack Smith, the justice department special counsel, and other prosecutors who charged the president-elect in two federal cases.

She described them as “horrible” people who she said were trying to make names for themselves by “going after Donald Trump and weaponising our legal system”, AP reports.

In May, she told Fox News a “tremendous amount of trust” was lost in the justice system after Trump was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in his historic criminal trial.

“It’s a sad day for our justice system,” she added.

Several Republican senators have expressed support for Bondi’s selection. Lindsey Graham, senator for South Carolina, called Bondi’s selection a “grand slam, touchdown, hole in one, ace, hat trick, slam dunk, Olympic gold medal pick.”

Eric Schmitt, senator for Missouri, said Bondi was a “great choice”.