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Live updates: Donald Trump, election news from Kamala Harris
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Live updates: Donald Trump, election news from Kamala Harris

Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon arrives at a press conference outside the federal penitentiary in Danbury, Connecticut, on July 1.

Steve Bannon was released from federal prison on Tuesday, according to a source. He emerged just a week before Election Day to retake the helm of his weakened right-wing media platform.

Bannon, a right-wing podcast host and the CEO of Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, has remained a strong supporter of the former president.

Even as he reported to federal prison in Connecticut in July, Bannon insisted he would influence the presidential race from behind bars and that his “War Room” podcast would continue to energize the Trump base.

While in prison, Bannon kept in digital contact with a small group of loyalists, including some of those who served as guest hosts for the podcast, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Bannon discussed the day’s news and politics in part, including topics he was thinking about for the show.

Bannon was met early Tuesday morning by his daughter Maureen. He is expected to present his radio program later on Tuesday.

He was convicted in 2022 of two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. He continues to appeal his conviction.

While in prison, Bannon’s MAGA megaphone suffered in his absence. According to data from Podchaser, “War Room,” which regularly appeared on Apple’s Top Podcasts before Bannon reported to prison, disappeared from the charts in early July. By another measure, the podcast was once near the top of Apple’s political podcast charts and has since fallen out of the top 25, according to data from Podchaser.

Although Bannon’s show is mainly seen as a boost to the Trump base, data from Edison Research podcast statistics showed that nearly half of Bannon’s audience were Republicans, but about a third of listeners were independents.

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CNN’s Kristen Holmes contributed reporting.

This post has been updated with additional information.