White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will step down at the end of August after serving in the role for a little over 18 months, President Trump announced Wednesday. The 28-year-old, who became the youngest person ever to hold the position when she took office at age 27, said she made the “bittersweet decision” to leave to spend more time with her two young children.
Leavitt returned to the White House podium on July 16 after maternity leave following the May birth of her second child, making her the first press secretary in history to have a child while serving in the role. In a statement on social media, she said that since becoming a mother again, she “felt in my heart that I cannot be the best mom my two young children deserve while devoting the constant time, energy, and attention required of the White House Press Secretary.”
Trump praised Leavitt’s tenure, saying she would now become “one of my top outside advisors, and an influential voice within the Republican Party, as we work to defy History, and conclusively win the Midterm Elections.” Leavitt was one of only eight women to have served as White House press secretary.
Her tenure of 18 months is the second-longest under Trump. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, now governor of Arkansas, served for nearly two years during Trump’s first term. By contrast, Trump’s other press secretaries from his first administration — Sean Spicer, Stephanie Grisham, and Kayleigh McEnany — each lasted less than a year.
Leavitt’s departure marks the fifth high-ranking woman to leave the Trump administration this year, following Pam Bondi as attorney general, Kristi Noem as homeland security secretary, Lori Chavez-DeRemer as labor secretary, and Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. All four were replaced by men.
The White House has not announced a successor. During Leavitt’s maternity leave, the administration did not name an interim press secretary, instead having various officials including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent conduct briefings. According to recent reporting, potential candidates for the role include Alina Habba, Steven Cheung, and Anna Kelly, the principal deputy press secretary.
Leavitt’s career in Trump’s orbit began as an assistant press secretary during his first term. She later became his national press secretary during the 2024 presidential campaign, where she gave birth to her first child and returned to work just four days into maternity leave after the assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. Between Trump’s two terms, she made an unsuccessful bid for Congress, running for a House seat in New Hampshire in 2022 and losing to Democratic Representative Chris Pappas.
Sources
- NBC News — Leavitt’s announcement and tenure details, her age and historic status as youngest press secretary
- The Guardian — Six key takeaways from her 20-month tenure and her role in the administration
- Associated Press — Leavitt’s statement calling the decision “bittersweet” and her focus on family
- BBC News — Confirmation of her age and historic role as youngest press secretary
- People Magazine — Details on her return from maternity leave on July 16, 2026
