Colmes to Leave ‘Hannity & Colmes’

Television host Alan Colmes will depart the FOX News commentary program “Hannity & Colmes” that bears half his namesake, the network announced Monday.

At the end of the year, Colmes will leave the show to develop a weekend program and become a commentator on the network’s other programs. Colmes had been the co-host of the show opposite conservative radio talk show host Sean Hannity for 12 years.

“I approached Bill Shine [FOX News’s Senior Vice President of Programming] earlier this year about wanting to move on after 12 years to develop new and challenging ways to contribute to the growth of the network,” Colmes said in a statement. “Although it’s bittersweet to leave one of the longest marriages on cable news, I’m proud that both Sean and I remained unharmed after sitting side by side, night after night for so many years.”

“Not only has Alan been a remarkable co-host, he’s been a great friend which is rare in this industry,” Hannity said. “I’ll genuinely miss sparring with such a skillful debate partner.”

FOX did not say in the release who would replace Colmes, if a replacement is to be named at all.

–Michael O’Brien