Leavitt left White House in August, joined Fox News as contributor
A source told CNN that Katie Zacharia was not considered as a possibility for the White House press secretary role until this week, UPI reported Friday. The same day, President Donald Trump offered Zacharia the role, White House officials said.
The New York Times was the first to report that Zacharia would be named to the post, replacing Karoline Leavitt. White House officials subsequently confirmed the news to The Hill and CNN, UPI reported.
UPI identified Zacharia as a conservative commentator. She previously worked as a communications adviser to Trump’s media company, which operates Truth Social, and briefly served as a spokesperson for former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
The press secretary post has been vacant since Leavitt left the White House in August shortly after returning from maternity leave. Trump said at the time she wanted to “spend more time with her beautiful young children and family.” Fox News announced Monday that Leavitt was joining the network as an on-air contributor.