Who Is Katie Zacharia? Trump Names New White House Press Secretary

Donald Trump, United States President selected the Katie Zacharia to become the new White House press secretary on October 9th 2026, replacing Karoline Leavitt, who had vacated the position in August. Katie Zacharia is an attorney and a political conservative commentator. She has worked in various capacities for different organizations, including the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns the social media platform, Truth Social.

Education and Early Career of Katie Zacharia

Zacharia pursued education in political science and government from Pepperdine University, graduating in 2007, and then obtained her degree in Juris Doctor from the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law in 2011.

Her early career in politics involved serving an internship in the White House under the Presidency of the George W. Bush in the year 2006. Thereafter, she gained experience in legal matters, political advocacy, and communication.

She thus has a professional background in which there is a combination of legal knowledge and involvement in political and media affairs.

Career at the Department of Homeland Security

In 2026, Zacharia was the spokesperson and deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security. Among others, the department’s jurisdictions include border security, immigration, cybersecurity, and national security.

She worked on public communication during the term of the former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Zacharia worked in this capacity for a brief period of time and left the department to return to media work.

This provided her with firsthand experience in the communication process of the federal government and the challenge of communicating administration policies to the media.

Role in Trump Media and Other Conservative News Networks

Prior to her selection by the White House, Zacharia has worked as a senior communications adviser with Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind the social media site called Truth Social that is owned by Donald Trump.

Zacharia has also served as a political analyst on various conservative TV news networks, such as Fox News and Newsmax. She has made appearances in these media outlets for commenting on US political affairs and the policies of the Trump administration.

Zacharia has also worked with Fix California, a conservative political organization. Her role with Fix California has involved legal and advisory work.

White House Press Secretary Functions

The White House press secretary is an important public representative of the US president and administration. It implies expressing the official viewpoint, making the policy announcements and answering to journalists’ inquiries.

The press secretary holds the press conferences, comments on developments that concern the administration and acts as a constant liaison between the White House and the journalists.

The post belongs to the White House communication department. While performing the functions of the press secretary one presents the viewpoint of the administration; however, journalists can ask questions concerning the official statements.