Katie Zakaria Steps Down as White House Press Secretary After Just Five Days

White House Press Secretary Katie Zakaria has stepped down from her position following intense criticism of her first press briefing and revelations that she had not passed the bar exam despite presenting herself as a lawyer.

NBC News reported that the development was confirmed by two senior administration officials, another administration official and a source familiar with the decision.

A senior administration official said Zakaria would be moving into a new role, which would be announced later. However, details about her new responsibilities have not yet been disclosed.

President Donald Trump’s decision to appoint Zakaria, a conservative media commentator, to one of the White House’s most prominent communication positions came as a surprise to many. Her appointment was announced last Friday, and she held her first press briefing on Tuesday morning following the three-day holiday weekend.

Her sudden departure leaves a key position in the White House communications team vacant less than three weeks before the midterm elections. Trump has repeatedly complained that poor public relations are hurting his administration and his party.

At a rally in Durant, Oklahoma, earlier this month, Trump said the country had never been doing better, but claimed that “fake news” was preventing the public from hearing about his administration’s achievements.

On Friday, Trump said he would leave the decision about whether Zakaria would remain in the role up to her. He also said the media had treated her “pretty rudely.”

Trump said he had told Zakaria that she did not have to continue in the job if she did not want to. He added that if he were in her position, he would “reconsider” the decision.

Two sources said Zakaria was scheduled to have dinner with Vice President JD Vance and his family at the Naval Observatory in Washington on Friday night.

Her first press briefing on Tuesday lasted less than 15 minutes. She answered only a handful of questions and was unable to respond when asked whether the United States had suspended intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

During the same briefing, Zakaria announced that Trump had asked Kimberly Guilfoyle, the U.S. ambassador to Greece, to resign. She made the announcement in response to a reporter’s question about whether the president was preparing to dismiss Guilfoyle over allegations of misconduct.

Guilfoyle denied the allegations and announced her resignation within hours.

Although Zakaria had presented herself as a lawyer, she acknowledged this week that she had not passed the bar exam after completing her legal education.

The Wall Street Journal first reported that she had failed the California bar exam. A senior administration official confirmed the information on Thursday. Zakaria also acknowledged the matter during an interview with right-wing activist Jack Posobiec.

An NBC News review found no evidence that Zakaria held a license to practice law in any U.S. state.

Zakaria studied at Pepperdine University School of Law and has claimed to have worked in the legal profession in China. However, legal experts told NBC News that only Chinese citizens are eligible to take China’s bar examination. One expert suggested that she may have worked as a consultant on cross-border legal matters.

The nonpartisan watchdog group Campaign for Accountability filed a complaint with the California State Bar, requesting an investigation into whether Zakaria violated the law by presenting herself as a lawyer without holding a valid license.

Before joining the White House, Zakaria served as a senior communications adviser at Trump Media & Technology Group, the company that operates Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social.

She replaced Karoline Leavitt, who had served as White House press secretary since the beginning of Trump’s second term in January 2025 before leaving the position at the end of August.

Zakaria’s tenure was even shorter than that of Anthony Scaramucci, who served as White House communications director for just 11 days during Trump’s first term.

Scaramucci’s name has since become synonymous with extremely short-lived government appointments.

On Friday, Scaramucci wrote on X that records were made to be broken, adding that he took no pleasure in someone else’s difficulties.