Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ Run as White House Press Secretary Is Over
President Trump announced on Thursday that Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will be leaving the White House at the end of June.
“After 3 1/2 years, our wonderful Sarah Huckabee Sanders will be leaving the White House at the end of the month and going home to the Great State of Arkansas,” the president tweeted. “She is a very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job! I hope she decides to run for Governor of Arkansas – she would be fantastic. Sarah, thank you for a job well done!”
….She is a very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job! I hope she decides to run for Governor of Arkansas – she would be fantastic. Sarah, thank you for a job well done!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2019
According to the New York Times, Sanders informed her staff of her departure only an hour before Trump made the announcement on Twitter.
Though Trump wants Sanders to follow in her father’s footsteps and run for governor of Arkansas, she’d have to wait a few years to do so. The current governor, Republican Asa Hutchinson, won’t be up for reelection until 2022. Sanders is, however, reportedly interested in the position.
Trump encourages Sarah Sanders to run for governor of Arkansas, a seat that opens up in 2022. I'm told that in private conversations in recent weeks, Sanders has floated running for it herself, telling people she thinks that would be a good next move.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) June 13, 2019
Sanders became the White House press secretary in July 2017, taking over for Sean Spicer, who held the role for the first six months of Trump’s presidency. A replacement for Sanders has yet to be named. Hogan Gidley is the current deputy press secretary.
This post has been updated.