Growing up, Karoline Leavitt had a dream of pursuing journalism. Leavitt was well on her way to becoming a sports anchor, but she changed course and got interested in politics. When she was a student at Saint Anselm College in 2016, Leavitt had her first encounter with President Donald Trump. “There was [an] event with — I think NBC News — on my college campus at the time, and I was one of the students chosen to ask him [Trump] a question,” Leavitt recalled in a conversation with The Daily Signal.
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Unknown to her at the time, she would later work with Trump as he sought a second term in office and eventually make history as the youngest White House press secretary. Following her November 2024 appointment, president Donald Trump heaped praise on Leavitt in his press statement. “Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator,” Trump wrote (via NPR). “I have the utmost confidence she will excel at the podium, and help deliver our message to the American people.”
Although Leavitt’s job is marred with controversies — reporters who sign off their emails with pronouns alleged that they were ignored due to an existing media policy — her journey to the White House is remarkable. From an industrious upbringing to a promising sports prowess that led to a scholarship to an unsuccessful congressional bid, here’s the story of her transformation.
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Karoline Leavitt grew up in Atkinson, New Hampshire
Karoline Leavitt was born in August 1997 to Bob and Erin Leavitt. The couple owned an ice cream shop in Atkinson, New Hampshire, a business that “has now grown to be a very successful family business,” as Karoline told “The Catholic Current” podcast. From an early age, Karoline helped her parents out in the ice cream shop. As such, she grew up knowing the value of hard work. “I used to work, probably before I was legally allowed to, but that was the way I was raised. We, you know, went to work every single day,” she recalled.
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Karoline has two older siblings, Joe and Mike Leavitt, with whom she shares a tight bond. Karoline also has a rare connection with her brother Joe; their long-term close friends, Nick and Erica Pandelena, wed each other in 2024. Karoline, who was a bridesmaid, took to Instagram to share a heartfelt caption, writing, “When your childhood best friend marries your brothers childhood best friend, it makes for an unforgettable weekend.”
Growing up around the boys — both of whom were athletic — encouraged Karoline to develop a tenacious spirit. The siblings often fought playfully, and Karoline was on the receiving end of their pranks whenever she was home alone. Nevertheless, Joe and Mike were still protective of Karoline. “I could be president and they’ll still treat me like their little sister,” Karoline remarked in an interview with Derry News. “I love that and I hope it never changes. They humble me and keep me grounded.”
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She attended a Catholic high school, which she credits for shaping her faith
Karoline Leavitt attended Central Catholic High School in Lawrence, Massachusetts. The institution was pivotal in shaping her character and affirming her faith, as she told “The Catholic Current” podcast. “Central Catholic High School was an incredible place,” Leavitt said. “It taught me discipline. It brought me closer in my own relationship with God, and it also taught me the importance of public service and giving back to your community.”
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Going on to prove that sentiment, Leavitt’s job at the White House is demanding and sometimes involves clashing with journalists and reporters. Case in point: In March 2025, the Trump administration was under fire when The Atlantic chief editor Jeffrey Goldberg claimed that he accidentally received text messages “in a group chat about upcoming military strikes in Yemen.” Responding to the allegations in a tweet, Leavitt said the story was fabricated. “The Atlantic has conceded: these were NOT ‘war plans,'” she wrote. “This entire story was another hoax written by a Trump-hater who is well-known for his sensationalist spin.”
Similarly, several people have publicly admitted that they cannot stand Leavitt and harshly criticized her conservative beliefs and values. Leavitt has dealt with the high pressure that comes with being the press secretary by returning to her Christian roots, as she told CBN News: “It [the job] could be difficult for someone who doesn’t have faith, but with faith, all things are possible. And my Catholic education was a pivotal part of my upbringing.”
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She attended Saint Anselm College on a softball scholarship
Karoline Leavitt joined Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire on a softball scholarship in 2015. She enrolled at the institution as a communication and politics student and played for the softball team for two years in 2016 and 2017. As a rookie, Karoline participated in 36 games and was third on the team in home runs, and in her sophomore year, she played in 19 games.
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According to Leavitt, being an athlete gave her the foundation she needed to survive the political atmosphere. “The game of softball and sports prepared me for the game of politics,” she said in her conversation with CBN News. “I was a competitive athlete growing up. Not just softball. I played field hockey and played many different sports throughout my childhood … [I learned] discipline, hard work, [and] teamwork. And also, competing against yourself to be the best that you can in athletics I think has prepared me, especially for this job.”
Leavitt excelled in class just as she did on the softball diamond. She made it to the Northeast-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll for two consecutive years and was named to the dean’s list multiple times.
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Karoline Leavitt founded a broadcasting club and wrote for The Saint Anselm Crier
During her time in college, Karoline Leavitt’s pursued her childhood dream of being a reporter. Growing up, she and her brothers would pretend to report the news and use a camera to take recordings themselves. It was therefore no surprise when Leavitt founded a broadcasting club in college.
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Dubbed the Saint Anselm Broadcasting Club (SABC), the group was the home of several shows by up-and-coming journalism talent in the school. Leavitt herself kept her audience up-to-date on politics; She covered the 2018 New Hampshire midterm election alongside co-host Ryan Dumont. She was also a sports anchor and often dished out the latest updates on Saint Anselm College’s famous field hockey team, the Hawks.
Leavitt possessed writing skills that she lent to the school paper, The Saint Anselm Crier. In her first online piece for the publication, she called out former CNN host Don Lemon for his alleged bias against Donald Trump. “On Don’s show, it’s okay for liberals to pick on Donald Trump for everything from his hair to his rhetoric,” Leavitt wrote. “The Democrats, and Don himself, critiqued Trump for nearly half the air time. Yet when the Republicans tried to speak, Don interrupted and hounded them with questions. How is this in any way fair?”
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She interned at the White House during Donald Trump’s first presidential term
Karoline Leavitt’s political interest began taking shape during the 2016 presidential election. She was still in college at the time and was “granted the opportunity to work for Fox News and meet several presidential candidates on my campus during the week of the New Hampshire primary,” as she told Politico. Leavitt further said, “That experience was my first glimpse into the world of press, and I knew I wanted to pursue it in my career post-grad.” Her political passion was nurtured through the New Hampshire Institute of Politics St. Anselm, a society that often invited veteran and aspiring politicians to speak to students.
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During her junior year in 2018, Leavitt went knocking on the door of Fox News again for an internship opportunity, but she wasn’t picked by the outlet. She eventually got an internship at the White House, during which she spent countless hours writing letters on behalf of president Trump. The application process was surprisingly seamless. “I literally went on whitehouse.gov and applied for the internship, and they chose me,” she recalled in an interview with “The Megyn Kelly Show.” “I don’t know why, but they did.” Leavitt revealed that she eyed the role after a classmate narrated their experience interning for the Obama administration: “I remember hearing her talk about it in class one day, and I thought, ‘That’s fascinating. I want to be an intern for Donald Trump.'”
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Karoline Leavitt lost her New Hampshire congressional bid to Chris Pappas
Karoline Leavitt graduated from Saint Anselm College in 2019. She returned to the White House that same year and worked as a presidential writer and an assistant press secretary until the Biden administration assumed office in 2021. Leavitt then got a job as the communications director for New York congressional representative Elise Stefanik before setting her sights on bigger political dreams.
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In 2022, 25-year-old Leavitt went up against incumbent New Hampshire congressman Chris Pappas as the Republican candidate in the congressional elections. Leavitt put up a spirited fight and was assured of an inevitable win. “I feel so confident, and I know that our team has worked so hard,” she told WMUR-TV. “We’ve knocked hundreds of thousands of doors. We’ve put in the work to speak to voters directly and to reach out to them to talk to them about the issues that are facing them and their families, their businesses, [and] our community.”
After winning the Republican primary, Leavitt lost the race to Pappas and acknowledged defeat after a little over 80% of the votes were counted. At the time, the incumbent had received a 53.8% share of the votes against Leavitt’s 46.2% and was ultimately re-elected for a third term. He still applauded Leavitt’s efforts, saying (via WMUR-TV), “I have nothing but respect for her and the campaign she ran, and we should all be grateful to those who step up to run for office.”
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She met and struck up a relationship with real estate mogul Nicholas Riccio
Karoline Leavitt first crossed paths with real estate developer Nicholas Riccio during her congressional campaigns. “A mutual friend of ours hosted an event at a restaurant that he owns up in New Hampshire and invited my husband, and I was speaking, and … we were acquainted as friends,” Leavitt recalled in her chat with “The Megyn Kelly Show.” One thing led to another, and the duo began dating.
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At first, Leavitt was skeptical about dating Riccio because of their 32-year age gap. Riccio has been called some savage nicknames by social media users, but Leavitt chooses to focus on his admirable qualities. The press secretary told “The Megyn Kelly Show,” “It’s [a] very atypical love story, but he’s incredible. He is my greatest supporter, he is my best friend, he’s my rock, and, you know, he’s built a very successful business himself, so now he’s fully supportive of me building, you know, my success and my career.”
Although Leavitt and Riccio both possess a determined spirit — Riccio was once homeless and worked hard enough to own 15 buildings on Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, by 2005 — they have different personalities. In a now-deleted Instagram post, Leavitt once revealed that she is the more extroverted partner, while Riccio prefers to keep to himself.
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She welcomed a son in July 2024
Karoline Leavitt and Nicholas Riccio welcomed their first child, Nicholas Robert, on July 10, 2024. An excited Leavitt took to Instagram to announce the good news, writing, in part, “It’s true when they say there’s nothing comparable to the love you feel for your child. My heart has grown bigger than I ever imagined possible. Babies are the ultimate blessing and I’m bursting with gratitude for our beautiful, happy, healthy boy.”
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It didn’t take long before the world of motherhood and Leavitt’s career clashed. On July 13, 2024, there was an assassination attempt on the life of president Donald Trump, who was campaigning for his second term in Butler, Pennsylvania. According to video footage from the rally, a gunman’s bullet missed Trump by a whisker, but left him with a bleeding ear. Leavitt, who worked as the spokesperson for Trump’s campaign, decided to return to work immediately.
Leavitt has since found a way to juggle motherhood and her career. Per her account, the former gives her the inspiration she needs to keep going. “Being a mom helps me to be better at my job,” Leavitt told the New York Post. “It gives me a great perspective on life and allows me to remember that not every bad day is the end of the world because my greater purpose is being a mom.”
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She became ‘the leader of the orchestra’ as the youngest White House press secretary
Karoline Leavitt made history by becoming the youngest press secretary at the White House, but she wasn’t assigned the office space her predecessors have all occupied — a spot next to the Oval. Leavitt still has the privilege of dancing to the tune of her own drum as a leader.
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She made her debut press briefing on January 28, 2025, during which she relayed information on cabinet nominations and several causes of action taken by the Trump government on illegal immigration, inflation, and gender recognition. “It definitely was a moment seeing just a sea of people who want to make me look bad,” Leavitt said of her first press briefing on “My View with Lara Trump.” “It’s just me, myself, and I up here, but it’s an empowering moment, and you are — as you can tell — elevated. You are the leader of the orchestra.”
Leavitt has a hefty payday as Trump’s press secretary. She is projected to be making six figures since a 2024 report revealed that several White House staff members, including the press secretary, made a $180,000 annual salary working for former president Joe Biden’s administration. However, the salary comes at the expense of proper sleep, which Leavitt doesn’t mind. “Actually, it’s usually about five to six hours a night is what I’m doing, which is all we need,” Leavitt told CBN News of her sleep schedule. “As President Trump says, when you love your job and you love your life, you don’t need to sleep much.”
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Karoline Leavitt and Nicholas Riccio privately walked down the aisle
Nicholas Riccio got down on one knee and popped the question to Karoline Leavitt in December 2023. A delighted Leavitt took to Instagram to share pictures from her simple beach engagement and wrote in the caption, “The best Christmas of my life.” Leavitt flaunted a radiant 3-carat diamond ring, which was said to cost a fortune.
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The couple reportedly tied the knot in January 2025, but Leavitt didn’t share photos from her big day until March 2025. “Finally found some time to post a few of my favorite pictures from one of my favorite days!” Leavitt wrote on Instagram. She looked stunning in a floor-length, long-sleeve wedding dress, which she paired with a set of closed-toe heels. Leavitt shockingly spent $700 on her wedding dress. Riccio, on the other hand, wore a sleek black tuxedo and sported a short fade haircut.
The Riccios appear to be one happy brood, but their age gap is still an eye-catching topic. On Easter weekend 2025, leggy pictures of Leavitt and her family surfaced on Instagram, which made her big age gap with her husband hard to ignore. According to fans, Leavitt looked young and vibrant in a loose-fitting knee-length yellow dress that she paired with strappy heels, while her husband appeared older in a casual suit-and-pant combo.
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