Attorney General Loretta Lynch will announce Friday that she plans to rely on the opinion of the FBI and career prosecutors on whether to press charges over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonJeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Momentum growing among Republicans for Supreme Court vote before Election Day Warning signs flash for Lindsey Graham in South Carolina MORE’s use of a private email server, a Justice Department official told The New York Times.

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The decision comes amid a political firestorm over a private meeting Lynch had with former President Bill Clinton William (Bill) Jefferson ClintonDolly Parton remembers Ginsburg: 'Her voice was soft but her message rang loud' Sunday shows preview: Justice Ginsburg dies, sparking partisan battle over vacancy before election Calls grow for Biden to expand election map in final sprint MORE on Monday at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. The former president has been on the campaign trail for his wife's White House bid. Hillary Clinton is the Democratic Party's presumptive nominee for president.

Many Republicans are calling for Lynch to recuse herself from the investigation, saying that the meeting shows a lack of judgment on her part and raises the possibility that partisan politics could shape the outcome of the case.

An unidentified official told the Times that Lynch for months had been mulling over the move to rely on the recommendation of the FBI and career prosecutors, but the furor over the meeting had forced the decision.

Lynch will give a speech on Friday in Aspen, Colo., during which she is expected to make the announcement.