Hope Hicks' Replacement Will Have A Seriously Tough Job — Here's Who Might Step In

On Wednesday, in an unexpected move, White House Communications Director Hope Hicks announced her resignation, continuing the Trump administration's record amount of personnel turnover. Which, of course, leaves an enormous hole in the White House staff ― if you're wondering who will replace Hope Hicks, suffice to say it's not totally clear just yet.

In the first 13 months of the Trump administration, there's been a simply startling amount of coming and going. A string of resignations and firings have left President Trump's cabinet looking wildly differently now than it did at the start of his term.

Perhaps no departure more highlights how the people around Trump have changed than Hicks', however. She was named the Trump campaign's press secretary in 2015 at just 26 years old, and is widely considered one of the president's closest and most trusted advisers, as well as a vital go-between.

But now she's moving on ― although what she's planning to do next isn't a matter of public knowledge just yet ― meaning that the administration needs to find itself a new communications director. Either that, or on the other hand, go without one entirely. Bustle has reached out to the White House regarding who might replace Hicks, but has so far received no answer.

There are obviously a number of figures who've worked in and around the White House before who you might think could make sensible choices. But there's already been enough turnover in the administration's public relations shop that many of the names which immediately pop to mind are people who've already been fired or resigned from the administration.

According to Politico's Eliana Johnson, however, Chief of Staff John Kelly is already eyeing his preferred replacement. It's not yet known, however, who he favors for the job.

But the answer to Hicks' replacement is anybody's guess. Many of the people who've worked closely with Trump on communications have already exited the administration, whether by firing or resignation. During his tenure as White House Press Secretary, for instance, Sean Spicer was also effectively the communications director. That job was later taken from him and given to Wall Street financier Anthony Scaramucci, prompting Spicer's resignation, then Scaramucci was subsequently fired in less than two weeks.

To be clear, the administration hasn't yet given any hints about who might take over from Hicks, so it's simply too soon to say with any certainty. If the White House opted to revisit the old road they went down with Spicer, they could theoretically give current White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders the extra job title, and the extra responsibilities that come with it.

They could also try to convince former Trump campaign spokesperson Jason Miller to take over the job, which he was initially supposed to following Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential election. Miller ultimately declined the job amid scandal, eventually acknowledging that engaged in an extramarital affair during the campaign, and fathered a child with former Trump staffer A.J. Delgado.

Looking to the past only does so much good, however, and from the sounds of things Kelly might already have somebody in mind. Formerly the head of the Department of Homeland Security under Trump, Kelly moved jobs to become chief of staff in July of 2017, replacing Trump's first chief of staff, Reince Priebus.

In other words, even though he hasn't been in his current job since the very beginning, Kelly has managed to survive in the administration for virtually its entire history. And with Hicks' impending departure, the number of people that's still true of will decrease just a little bit further.