Pregnant Karoline Leavitt Says She's Having Her Baby 'Any Minute' as She Begins White House Maternity Leave
Pregnant Karoline Leavitt Says She's Having Her Baby 'Any Minute' as She Begins White House Maternity Leave
Kimberlee SpeakmanSat, April 25, 2026 at 5:08 PM UTC
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Karoline Leavitt puts a hand over her baby bump.Credit: Alex Wroblewski / AFP via Getty -
Karoline Leavitt is going on maternity leave
The White House press secretary, who is expecting her second baby with husband Nicholas Riccio, said she is due "any minute"
The White House has not named a replacement for Leavitt while she goes on maternity leave
Karoline Leavitt is going on maternity leave.
The White House press secretary, 28, told reporters on Friday, April 24, that they won’t see her for some time as she prepares to welcome her second baby in May.
"This will likely be my last gaggle for some time. As you can see," Leavitt said as she glanced down at her baby bump, per USA Today, AFP and UPI. "I'm about ready to have a baby any minute, so I will see you guys very soon."
“I know you'll be in very good hands with my team here at the White House. And I know all of you have the president's phone number personally, so I have no doubt that you will have a shortage of statements and news from this building while I’m gone,” she then joked, nodding to an article from The Atlantic centering around Trump’s personal phone number being leaked.
The White House has not named a replacement for the press secretary while she goes on maternity leave. White House communications will be handled by White House communications director Steven Cheung and Leavitt’s current team in the meantime.
Karoline Leavitt outside the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, April 24.Credit: Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty
Leavitt, who is the youngest press secretary in U.S. history, announced that she and her husband, Nicholas Riccio, are expecting their second baby, a girl, through a December Instagram post.
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“The greatest Christmas gift we could ever ask for - a baby girl coming in May 2026.☺️," she began the caption of her post.
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“My husband and I are thrilled to grow our family and can’t wait to watch our son become a big brother. My heart is overflowing with gratitude to God for the blessing of motherhood, which I truly believe is the closest thing to Heaven on Earth. 🥹," Leavitt continued.
Leavitt and Riccio, 60, welcomed their first child — a son, Nicholas "Niko" Robert Riccio — in July 2024.
Appearing on The Megyn Kelly Show in February 2025, Leavitt said she went back to work shortly after her son’s birth due to the assassination attempt on Trump in July 2024.
She said, “[It] kind of threw me right back to work much sooner than I would have probably expected or hoped."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
