Karoline Leavitt listens to Donald Trump onboard Air Force One in January 2026. Photograph: Nathan Howard/ReutersView image in fullscreenKaroline Leavitt listens to Donald Trump onboard Air Force One in January 2026. Photograph: Nathan Howard/ReutersUS newsExplainerWho will replace Karoline Leavitt as the next White House press secretary?Karoline Leavitt’s abrupt departure has sparked a tough race inside Trump’s circle for the prominent positionShrai Popat in WashingtonThu 13 Aug 2026 21.54 CESTLast modified on Thu 13 Aug 2026 23.35 CESTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleKaroline Leavitt’s surprise resignation as the White House press secretary is set to trigger a sharp-elbowed race inside Donald Trump’s world for one of the most prominent positions in the Trump administration.Will Trump’s next press secretary be a better liar than the first five?Read moreSeveral names have circulated since the US president announced that Leavitt would step down at the end of the month to spend more time with her family.Here are some of the possible contenders.Stephen CheungView image in fullscreenSteven Cheung at the Lehigh Valley international airport in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Photograph: Anna Moneymaker/Getty ImagesCheung currently serves as the White House communications director, and has worked closely with Leavitt throughout the second Trump administration. When he praised the outgoing press secretary for her tenure on Wednesday, Leavitt joked on social media that the pair had survived “many, many news cycles” together.Alina HabbaView image in fullscreenAlina Habba speaking to reporters outside the White House in 2025. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPAHabba is a loyal ally of the president who served as his personal lawyer before becoming a short-lived US attorney for New Jersey. A federal judge ultimately ruled her appointment was unlawful.But Habba has been one of the president’s most vocal defenders on conservative outlets. According to the New York Post, citing sources within the administration, Habba is an early frontrunner to replace Leavitt.Anna KellyKelly already works at the White House as the principal deputy press secretary, working under Leavitt. She was previously a spokesperson for Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, and before that she served as national press secretary for the Republican National Committee.Katie MillerView image in fullscreenKatie Miller in the Oval Office in 2025. Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty ImagesAs the wife of Stephen Miller, a top White House aide and immigration policy architect, Katie Miller has a front row seat to the administration’s movements. And as an influential conservative podcast host, Katie has spent a lot of time interviewing cabinet officials and rightwing media figures.Before launching her podcast, Katie was a communications director for the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge). She was Vice-President Mike Pence’s press secretary from 2019 to 2021.Taylor BudowichView image in fullscreenTaylor Budowich at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, in September 2025. Photograph: Alex Brandon/APBudowich is a former White House deputy chief of staff, who worked alongside Miller and Dan Scavino. He left the White House last year to join the private sector.Alongside Leavitt, Budowich was one of the defendants in the case brought by the Associated Press after the outlet was banned from the press rotation for refusing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”.Explore more on these topicsUS newsTrump administrationDonald TrumpUS politicsRepublicansexplainersShareReuse this content
