August 12, 2026 · Personnel, Competence & Administrative Failure
· Personnel action
Confirmed
Karoline Leavitt to Step Down as White House Press Secretary
President Trump announced Aug. 12 that White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, will leave her post at the end of the month to spend more time with her two young children, and will continue as an outside adviser to Trump and the Republican Party through the midterms. Leavitt, the youngest press secretary in U.S. history, had returned to the podium only weeks earlier after maternity leave following the May 1 birth of her daughter. She had served 18 months, the second-longest tenure of any Trump press secretary after Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
The departure removes one of Trump's most visible and loyal defenders from the briefing room less than three months before the midterms, at a moment when Trump is contending with low approval ratings, the continuing Iran war and high gas prices. White House officials said a replacement had not been chosen as of Wednesday afternoon.
Leavitt's exit adds to notable turnover in the West Wing communications operation, following the earlier departures of deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich and two of Leavitt's own deputies.
The departure removes one of Trump's most visible and loyal defenders from the briefing room less than three months before the midterms, at a moment when Trump is contending with low approval ratings, the continuing Iran war and high gas prices. White House officials said a replacement had not been chosen as of Wednesday afternoon.
Leavitt's exit adds to notable turnover in the West Wing communications operation, following the earlier departures of deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich and two of Leavitt's own deputies.