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Leavitt Steps Down As Spokeswoman After 18 Months on the Job

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, will leave her role to spend more time with her family with no successor yet named, President Trump announced.

August 13, 2026 Zülal Merve Bulut

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Karoline Claire Leavitt - White House Press Secretary - Anadolu Agency

President Trump announced that White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, will leave her role at the end of the month.

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Leavitt, the youngest person to hold the position, has served for roughly 18 months.

She covered Trump's entire second term since January 2025.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that she "will now be one of my top outside advisors" and called her "one of the best White House Press Secretaries in the History of the Office."

Leavitt Cites Family Balance

In a post on X, Leavitt said she could not "be the best mom my two young children deserve" while handling the demands of the role, calling the decision "bittersweet."

She gave birth to her second child, daughter Viviana, in May 2026 and returned from maternity leave in mid-to-late July.

She also has a two-year-old son. She said she will continue as an outside advisor to Trump and "a vocal advocate for MAGA and the Republican Party."

Who Is Next

No successor has been named, and the departure comes less than three months before the November 2026 midterm elections, which Trump said Leavitt would help the Republican Party win from her new advisory role.

Leavitt previously worked as a Trump press aide during his first term, served as a 2024 campaign and transition spokeswoman, and unsuccessfully ran for Congress in New Hampshire in 2022.

Leavitt Steps Down As Spokeswoman After 18 Months on the Job