US President Donald Trump has appointed conservative media commentator Katie Zacchia as the new White House Press Secretary.

President Trump announced on his social media platform, Truth Social, that it is "a great honor to appoint Katie Zacchia as White House Press Secretary," describing her as "a loyal and outstanding supporter from the beginning."

He explained that Zacchia participated in his past campaign and contributed to winning key battleground states, adding that "Katie will work wonderfully with the press, the American people, and our administration."

[Donald Trump / US President: Katie will be taking over as press secretary. She is a friend to most of you. She likes people. In fact, she seemed to like all of you. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but anyway, we've got a new press secretary and I think she's going to do a fantastic job.]

A lawyer by training and a mother of four, Zacchia has been serving as a senior communications advisor at Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG).

She also worked as the Department of Homeland Security spokesperson for several months and has appeared as a political commentator on conservative outlets Fox News and Newsmax.

Zacchia succeeds former Press Secretary Leavitt, who stepped down in August.

Former Press Secretary Leavitt took office as White House Press Secretary at the age of 27 with the launch of the second Trump administration in January of last year, setting a record as the youngest ever.

In a post on her X (formerly Twitter) account, incoming Press Secretary Zacchia said, "Thank you, President Trump, for the extraordinary honor of serving as White House Press Secretary," adding, "His trust is a true privilege, and his leadership is a blessing to this nation."

Reported by Kim Yong-tae | Video by Na Hong-hee | Graphics by Lee Jung-joo | Produced by SBS Digital News