Katie Zacharia has been offered the White House press secretary role, replacing Karoline Leavitt after Leavitt left the job in August. Zacharia, a former Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, would step into one of the White House’s most visible communications posts, with regular on-camera briefings and television appearances.
The offer follows a personnel shift that began after Leavitt gave birth to her second child on May 1 and later left the job to spend more time with her family. For Zacharia, the move would return her to a role built around daily message discipline and public appearances.
White House and Karoline Leavitt
Zacharia spent about three months at the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year before leaving in March, when Markwayne Mullin took over as secretary. She is now at Fix California, which was founded by Ric Grenell and focuses on advancing the conservative agenda in California. Her background also includes a stint in the White House Office of Political Affairs during George W. Bush’s second term.
Her résumé points to a candidate who has moved through both governing and campaign-style communications roles. She also interns for the Republican National Committee while attending Pepperdine University and is a frequent guest on.
Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski
While at the Department of Homeland Security, Zacharia was reported to be close to Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski. That proximity gives the offer a wider political reach inside the White House, where personnel choices can reflect both communications needs and internal alliances.
The appointment could also affect the balance around Susie Wiles, because Lewandowski and Ric Grenell have a known distaste for her. That makes the press secretary post more than a staffing change: it would place a closely connected figure in a role that sits near the center of White House access, message control and daily television exposure.
California for Just the News
Zacharia has said the long commute from California strained her family, telling Just the News that “it put a strain on her family.” She is a mom of four, and that detail helps explain why she left the Department of Homeland Security after a short run there.
The open question now is whether she accepts the offer. If she does, the White House gets a spokesperson with experience in federal communications, campaign politics and television; if she does not, the search for Leavitt’s replacement continues with the job still unfilled.
