Overview
- Gabbard announced her resignation on Friday, May 22, 2026, saying she will leave on June 30 to care for her husband after he was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of bone cancer.
- The deputy director, Aaron Lukas, is expected to serve as acting intelligence coordinator, a move the White House says will keep day-to-day oversight of the 18-agency U.S. intelligence community in place.
- Media reports note that in recent weeks Gabbard and President Trump publicly differed over the Iran conflict and uranium enrichment, and that the president had considered replacing her.
- President Trump posted praise for Gabbard on Truth Social after her announcement, while multiple outlets reported she informed him of her decision in an Oval Office meeting.
- Gabbard, appointed at the start of Trump's second term in early 2025, leaves a role that centralizes intelligence advice to the president, and her exit adds to senior turnover at a sensitive time for U.S. foreign policy.