Trump Names Katie Zacharia White House Press Secretary, Replacing Leavitt

Trump Names Katie Zacharia White House Press Secretary, Replacing Leavitt

President Trump said Friday he has appointed Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary, filling the job Karoline Leavitt left in August.

“It is my Great Honor to have just appointed, as Press Secretary, Katie Zacharia,” he wrote on Truth Social. He said she currently serves as senior communications adviser to Truth Social and Trump Media & Technology Group, “where she has been outstanding.” He called her a California native who previously served as spokesperson and deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, a graduate of Pepperdine University and the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, an attorney, and a frequent commentator on Fox News and Newsmax. He said she worked on his campaigns in swing states “where we won 7 out of 7,” and that she has “an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning.” He closed by calling her “a devoted fan and member of MAGA” and said she is replacing “the fabulous Karoline Leavitt, who did a fantastic job as Press Secretary.”

The New York Times reported the selection first. Fox News Digital had reported earlier Friday, citing two White House officials, that Zacharia had been offered the job and that it was not yet clear she had accepted. Trump’s post treated the appointment as done. CNN, citing a person familiar with the discussions, reported that he had called allies in recent days, including Leavitt, to ask their view of Zacharia.

Leavitt stepped down in August after the birth of her second child. Just the News has reported she is expected to start as a Fox News contributor next month, which would make her the second Trump press secretary, after Kayleigh McEnany, to move to the network. The briefing room has been without a permanent press secretary since she left. Vice President JD Vance held the first briefing after her departure.

Zacharia’s government tenure was short. Reuters and the BBC, citing her LinkedIn page, said she has been a senior communications adviser at Trump Media and Truth Social since June, after a DHS stint that ran from February to March. The BBC reported she later said she left Homeland Security because of the strain of travel between California and Washington on her family. Before that she was a legal adviser to Fix California, a group that describes its aim as breaking what it calls the left’s hold on state politics. She has been a regular guest on Fox, Newsmax, and CNN.

Trump wrote that he is confident she “will deliver strong results for our Country as the next White House Press Secretary, as she has the respect of, and will work fantastically with, the Media, the American People, and my Administration.”