With White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt set to step down from her role at the end of the month, the question of who will replace her is looming over Washington.
Leavitt, 28, assumed the Press Secretary role at the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term last January, becoming the youngest person to ever hold the position.
President Donald Trump announced Leavitt’s departure in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, saying that she would leave her role to focus on her family but that she would remain one of his “top advisors, and an influential voice within the Republican Party.”
Leavitt, who gave birth to her second child in May, thanked Trump in a lengthy post on X, in which she described her decision to focus on her two young children “bittersweet.”
“I will always remain a vocal advocate for MAGA and the Republican Party,” Leavitt wrote.
Read More: Karoline Leavitt’s Most Memorable Moments as White House Press Secretary
The White House has so far offered no further information on who might succeed Leavitt as Press Secretary. It redirected TIME to Leavitt and Trump’s posts when asked about candidates for the position, and has told multiple outlets that no decision has been made.
But some names are already being floated as possible contenders to take Leavitt’s place behind the White House podium. Here’s what you should know about those potential replacements.
Trump’s former personal lawyer Alina Habba is reportedly being considered to take over as Press Secretary when Leavitt departs.
The New York Post reported on Wednesday, citing sources within and close to the Administration, that Habba was an early frontrunner for the role.
Habba joined Trump’s legal team in 2021 and became a prominent public voice in his defense during the 2024 hush-money trial that resulted in his conviction on 34 felony counts.
Trump said after his reelection that he was naming Habba as his presidential counsellor, and called her “a "tireless advocate for justice" and "unwavering in her loyalty.”
Following his return to the White House, Trump last year selected Habba for another position: the interim U.S. attorney in New Jersey. He later nominated her to serve in that role on a permanent basis, but her confirmation faced headwinds in the Senate and a panel of judges declined to extend her interim tenure, seeking to replace her. Trump and his Justice Department battled to keep her there, though, and he withdrew her nomination to clear the way for her to take on the position in an acting capacity.
Habba ultimately stepped down from the U.S. attorney post in December, after a federal court found that she had been unlawfully appointed. She thereafter moved into a role as Senior Advisor to then-Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Matthew Boyle
Matthew Boyle, the Washington bureau chief of conservative news outlet Breitbart, is also reported to be in the running.
Sources in and close to the Administration told the Post that Boyle, like Habba, is a frontrunner to replace Leavitt.
Boyle has never previously worked for Trump in either a private capacity or as part of his Administrations. He has conducted a number of interviews with him, however, including one in the Oval Office in June.
Scott Jennings, a Trump defender and MAGA political commentator who frequently spars with Democrats on CNN, is another name that is reportedly at the top of the list of potential contenders.
Sources with knowledge of the situation told the Daily Beast that Jennings is the current frontrunner to succeed Leavitt.
Jennings served as special assistant to the president under President George W. Bush and has worked on four presidential campaigns.
He has also advised on campaigns for Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and former Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher.
Trump has publicly praised Jennings, who once was a critic of the President.
“I think he's terrific: Scott Jennings,” Trump said at a rally in Michigan last year. “He's defending me all the time on CNN.”
Anna Kelly
Anna Kelly, who serves as the White House deputy secretary under Leavitt, has been raised as a potential candidate for the role from within the current White House communications team.
She previously worked as the national press secretary for the Republican National Committee, and for Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin.
Another name believed to be in the mix is Tricia McLaughlin.
McLaughlin became known as a fierce defender of Trump’s immigration policies as a former assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security. She left her role in February.
During Trump’s first term, McLaughlin also worked at the State and Treasury departments. She then became a communications chief for Gov. Mike DeWine’s 2022 reelection campaign and a senior communications advisor for Vivek Ramaswamy’s 2024 presidential campaign.
Katie Miller
Katie Miller, a conservative podcaster, former Trump staffer, and the wife of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, has also been noted as a potential candidate for the Press Secretary role.
Miller served as the communication director for the shuttered Department of Government Efficiency last year.
Before that, she worked as an assistant press secretary at DHS during Trump’s first term. She left the position to serve as the communications director for former Republican Sen. Martha McSally of Arizona, before becoming former Vice President Mike Pence’s communication director.
Steven Cheung
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung may also be a contender to become the next Press Secretary.
Cheung has worked alongside Trump in various capacities since his first Administration, during which he served as the White House assistant communications director. He was fired from the position in 2018 amid a staff shake-up, but went on to consult for Trump’s 2020 campaign. He also led communications for Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc., and was Trump’s director of communications on his 2024 presidential campaign.
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