White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will depart her post at the end of August, President Donald Trump announced Wednesday, ending the tenure of the youngest press secretary in American history roughly eighteen months after she first stepped behind the podium. The announcement, delivered first by Trump on Truth Social and confirmed shortly after by Leavitt herself on X, sets in motion a significant reshuffling of the president’s communications operation less than three months before the November midterm elections.
Trump broke the news at 2:34 p.m. on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, in a lengthy Truth Social post praising Leavitt’s tenure. “Our wonderful White House Press Secretary, and one of my most trusted aides, Karoline Leavitt, will be departing her role at the end of the month so she can spend more time with her beautiful young children and family, a decision I totally understand and respect!” Trump wrote. He added that Leavitt “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.”
Trump credited Leavitt with a “phenomenal job fighting for Justice, Liberty, and Freedom, since 2018, including our Historic Re-Election Campaign of 2024,” referencing her earlier work on his political operation well before she joined the administration. He closed the post with unambiguous praise for her performance in the role: “Karoline has been one of the best White House Press Secretaries in the History of the Office. Thank you, Karoline, for a job well done! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
Roughly eight minutes later, at 2:42 p.m., Leavitt posted her own statement on X confirming the decision in her own words. “Serving as the White House Press Secretary over the past year and a half has been the honor and adventure of a lifetime. I am incredibly grateful to President Trump for granting me so many extraordinary opportunities, such as working in the West Wing and spending countless hours in the Oval Office, flying around the world and meeting foreign leaders, and traveling across our beautiful country and meeting Americans from all walks of life,” she wrote.
Leavitt went on to describe what she considered the central privilege of the job. “Most of all, I am thankful to the President for entrusting me with the distinct privilege of speaking on his behalf at the White House podium. I have spoken with great pride about the many historic accomplishments of this Administration, and I have relished holding the liberal media accountable and ensuring the American people hear the truth about President Trump’s successes,” she said.
She then addressed the personal calculus behind her decision directly, tying it to the arrival of her second child. “Being a mother and welcoming a new baby while working in one of the most demanding jobs in the world has been the most rewarding yet challenging season of my life, to say the least. 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 — and that is why I have ultimately made the bittersweet decision to depart the White House and embark on a new chapter in my life,” she wrote.
Leavitt made clear the move is not a break from Trump’s orbit. “President Trump has asked me to continue serving as a top advisor to him on the outside, and I will always remain a vocal advocate for MAGA and the Republican Party,” she said, before framing her exit from the podium as a shift in tactics rather than an end to her political involvement. “Our country is facing an existential threat from an increasingly extremist Democrat Party that seeks to destroy everything great about America, and I believe it is incumbent upon all of us who care about this country to fight back against that threat. My fight is entering a new phase, but it is far from over.”
Leavitt closed her statement with a series of thank-yous, singling out the president’s family and staff. “Thank you again to the President, the First Lady, and the entire Trump family for your kindness and generosity over the years. Thank you to our amazing Chief of Staff Susie Wiles for empowering me since the day she hired me on the campaign, and to the President’s cabinet, my staff, colleagues, and friends at the White House who work so hard on behalf of our nation. It has been a privilege to serve alongside so many accomplished and impressive people, and I look forward to cheering them on over the next two and a half years.” She ended by thanking “my loving and supportive husband and family for the sacrifices they made for me to serve in this role.”
Leavitt, 28, made history when Trump named her press secretary in November 2024, becoming the youngest person ever to hold the position and, according to reporting following Wednesday’s announcement, the first press secretary to navigate a pregnancy while serving in the role. She gave birth to her second child during her tenure and returned from maternity leave earlier this year to resume her regular briefings.
Leavitt’s path to the podium ran through Trump’s political operation rather than a traditional press career. She interned in the White House Office of Presidential Correspondence during Trump’s first term and later became its associate director before serving as an assistant White House press secretary starting in June 2020. She went on to serve as a spokeswoman for MAGA Inc., Trump’s super PAC, before becoming press secretary for his 2024 presidential campaign, a role that positioned her for the West Wing appointment that followed his election victory.
Notably, Leavitt also carries her own electoral history within the Republican Party, having been the GOP nominee in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District during the 2022 midterm elections, a race she lost before joining Trump’s orbit full-time ahead of the 2024 campaign.
Leavitt succeeded Karine Jean-Pierre, who served as press secretary under President Joe Biden from May 2022 until the end of his term in January 2025. Trump had cycled through four different press secretaries during his first term in office, from January 2017 to January 2021, a contrast frequently noted by outlets covering Wednesday’s announcement given the relative stability of Leavitt’s tenure by comparison.
Coverage following the announcement noted that press briefings had become noticeably less frequent during Leavitt’s recent maternity leave, with the podium instead filled on a rotating basis by senior officials including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, appearances described as drawing mixed results. As of Wednesday, the White House had not named a successor to take over the briefing room duties once Leavitt’s departure takes effect at the end of the month.
Leavitt’s departure lands roughly three months ahead of the November midterm elections, a timeline Trump referenced explicitly in his announcement by naming her a future adviser in the effort to “conclusively win the Midterm Elections.” Her shift to an outside advisory role suggests she is expected to take on a more overtly political function within the Republican Party’s midterm strategy than the nonpartisan-facing communications role required at the White House podium.
The announcement marks one of the more significant personnel changes inside Trump’s inner circle so far in his second term, removing from daily White House operations one of the administration’s most visible and consistent public defenders at a moment when the press operation is already being tested by an active war footing tied to Operation Epic Fury and a run-up to a closely watched midterm cycle.