President Donald Trump has named Katie Zacharia the next White House press secretary, elevating a MAGA loyalist and Truth Social adviser to succeed Karoline Leavitt after her August departure.
Trump made the appointment public on Truth Social, highlighting Zacharia’s current post as senior communications adviser to the platform operated by Trump Media & Technology Group and calling her performance outstanding.
The Daily Caller reported the move on October 9, 2026, noting that Zacharia steps into the role once held by Karoline Leavitt from the start of the second Trump administration. Leavitt left in August shortly after the birth of her second child.
Trump framed the choice as a reward for proven loyalty and results. In his Truth Social post he wrote that Zacharia had assisted his campaigns in key swing states “where we won 7 out of 7,” adding that she carries “an unblemished record of support” and has been “a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning” as “a devoted fan and member of MAGA.”
"It is my Great Honor to have just appointed, as Press Secretary, Katie Zacharia. Katie currently serves as Senior Communications Advisor to Truth Social (Trump Media & Technology Group), where she has been outstanding!... Good luck Katie! President DONALD J. TRUMP"
The Washington Examiner carried the fuller campaign detail and Trump’s description of her unbroken MAGA record.
Zacharia arrives with a résumé built inside Republican politics and Trump-aligned operations. She previously served briefly as spokeswoman and deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security under then-Secretary Kristi Noem.
In a February 18, 2026 post she described that DHS assignment as an honor and pledged to “work tirelessly to Make America Great Again.” She has also worked as a legal adviser for Fix California, the group founded by Trump special envoy Ric Grenell, and currently advises Trump Media & Technology Group.
Her early path tracked standard conservative ladders. She interned at the Republican National Committee in 2006 and later at the White House Office of Public Affairs during the Bush administration. She earned her law degree from Pepperdine University and its Caruso School of Law.
Just The News noted those academic credentials alongside her DHS title and confirmed Leavitt is expected to join Fox News as a contributor after leaving the briefing room.
Hours after Trump’s announcement, Zacharia posted her thanks on X. She cast the job as service at a “critical 250-year mark” for the country and promised to keep delivering results while communicating the administration’s daily wins to the press corps and reporters nationwide.
"Thank you to President Trump for the distinguished privilege of serving as White House Press Secretary. Serving President Trump and the American people at this critical 250-year mark is the honor of a lifetime. President Trump has shown America that we can be great again, and he works to effectuate that greatness every single day. His confidence is a true privilege, and his leadership is a blessing to this country. The work ahead is to continue delivering strong results for our Country and communicating to the American people the major wins that this Administration is making every single day. I look forward to working with the White House press corps, and with reporters across the country, to get that record out. Following the fabulous Karoline Leavitt is a high standard, and one worth meeting. God bless President Trump, and God bless America."
Breitbart identified her as the 37th White House press secretary and underscored that she succeeds Leavitt, who left to spend more time with her children.
Trump offered a warmer, off-the-cuff assessment as well. Speaking about the hire, he told reporters she is “a friend of most of you,” likes people, and “is going to be, I think, terrific.”
The New York Post reported those remarks and tied Zacharia’s path through the swing-state campaigns, Fix California, and her ongoing advisory role at Trump Media.
Leavitt had held the press secretary post since the opening of Trump’s second term. Her August departure created the opening Zacharia now fills. The new secretary inherits a high-visibility brief: defend the administration’s record in real time, keep the White House press corps informed, and project the same message of results that Trump praised in his announcement.
Zacharia’s own words set a clear bar. She named Leavitt’s tenure “a high standard, and one worth meeting,” then pledged to put the administration’s wins in front of the American people every day. Trump, for his part, expressed confidence she will “deliver strong results for our country as the next White House Press Secretary.”
The appointment keeps a familiar pattern: promote proven communicators who already know the operation, the message, and the fights that come with both. Zacharia has worked the campaigns, the DHS podium, the media company, and the outside advocacy lane. Now she takes the daily briefing.
Voters hired this administration to keep its promises and explain them without apology. A press secretary who already believes the record is worth defending is the right person for that job.
