Youngest White House Press Secretary Leavitt to Leave at Month's End

WASHINGTON, D.C. – White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the youngest person to hold the role, will step down at the end of the month. She cited the demands of raising two young children.

Leavitt, 28, called it a “bittersweet decision” in a social media post Wednesday. President Donald Trump announced her departure in his own post shortly before she went public.

“The truth is since returning to the White House after the birth of my daughter, I have 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,” Leavitt wrote. “That is why I have ultimately made the bittersweet decision to depart the White House and embark on a new chapter in my life.”

Trump said he “totally understand and respect” the decision. He indicated she would remain in his orbit.

“Karoline will now be 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,” the president wrote.

Leavitt returned to the White House podium in May after the birth of her daughter, Viviana. She also has a 2-year-old son. Her tenure as press secretary was brief by historical standards – about 15 months – but she carved a distinct role.

Unlike some recent predecessors, Leavitt briefed from the press room less frequently. Trump, who regularly engages with reporters at events and during travel, primarily deployed her to Fox News and other conservative outlets to promote his agenda and criticize Democrats and mainstream media. That approach reflected Trump’s own preference for friendly platforms over the adversarial press briefing.

Trump did not name a successor. The decision on a replacement will signal how he wants to handle media relations heading into the 2026 midterm elections. A more conventional choice – someone who holds daily briefings and engages the White House press corps – would mark a shift. A continuation of the current strategy would likely mean another loyalist who focuses on cable news appearances.

Leavitt’s path to the podium started in Trump’s first term, when she worked as an aide in the White House press office. She later became communications director for New York Republican Representative Elise Stefanik. In 2022 she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing the general election to incumbent Democratic Representative Chris Pappas. She then served as a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign.

Her departure leaves a hole in Trump’s communications team at a time when the administration faces a series of policy battles and the midterm campaign season is ramping up. The press secretary role is a high-profile perch for shaping the president’s message, and whoever fills it will inherit a fractured relationship with much of the mainstream news media.

Trump’s first-term press secretaries – Sean Spicer, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Stephanie Grisham, and Kayleigh McEnany – each handled the job differently. Grisham never held a briefing. McEnany often lectured the press. Leavitt’s style was closer to McEnany’s in substance but with a lower public profile.

Leavitt said she would continue to be an influential voice within the Republican Party as an outside advisor. That arrangement is unusual for a departing press secretary, but it fits Trump’s pattern of keeping former aides close.