LOS ANGELES — Bill Melugin, an Orange County native who made his name at Fox News covering the U.S. southern border, is relocating to Washington, D.C., where he will cover Congress for the network.

Fox News announced Thursday that Melugin will begin his new role as congressional correspondent immediately.

“Bill’s dogged dedication to uncovering the story and deep understanding of national issues make him an excellent fit to cover the complex world of Congress,” Fox News President and Executive Editor Jay Wallace said in a statement.

Melugin, 35, has been a Los Angeles-based correspondent for the network since 2021, becoming a regular on-screen presence with his coverage of the undocumented migrants crossing the southern U.S. border. He did 1,000 live shots from the Rio Grande Valley in 2022.

Melugin handled a number of other major breaking news events across the country, including the 2025 California wildfires and the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

Melugin’s move to Washington is an indication that Fox News has larger plans for him. He has been brought to Washington several times in recent years for fill-in work at the anchor desk and a permanent role there is likely in his future.

Melugin has been reluctant to leave Los Angeles as he is close to his widowed mother Audrey, who lives in Orange County. But in a 2023 interview with the Times, she gave her blessing to any advancement opportunity.

“I’ve always told him if you have a better opportunity do it, but he is very protective of me,” she said. “I appreciate it. But I don’t want to be the one to hold him back either.”

Before joining Fox News Media, Melugin was an investigative reporter for the Fox-owned station KTTV in Los Angeles, where he was awarded three local Emmy awards for investigative work. He was part of the KTTV team that uncovered exclusive pictures of California Gov. Gavin Newsom dining at French Laundry without a mask at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

He previously held anchor and reporter roles at Fox TV affiliates in Charlotte, North Carolina, and El Paso, Texas.

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