White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has described her 32-year age gap marriage with husband Nicholas Riccio as “atypical.”
The couple met in 2022 and tied the knot on the eve of Leavitt joining President Donald Trump’s second administration in January 2025. They share two children — son Niko, born in July 2024, and daughter Vivi, born in May 2026.
Leavitt has suggested that the significant age gap has been a benefit in her relationship because her real estate developer husband is comfortable letting her thrive in her career. (Leavitt is the youngest person to serve as White House press secretary in history, having taken over the job at age 27 in January 2025.)
“He’s built a very successful business himself, so now he’s fully supportive of me building my success in my career,” Leavitt explained on The Megyn Kelly Show in February 2025.
Keep scrolling to find out more about Riccio and his marriage to Leavitt.
Nicholas Riccio Was Homeless as a Teenager
In a rare interview with the Sunday Herald in March 2005, Nicholas described a rough upbringing as one of Marilyn and Anthony Riccio’s four children.
Marilyn and Anthony divorced during Nicholas’ childhood and he later lived on the streets as a teenager. (Both of Riccio’s parents later died of cancer.)
“When I was 19 or 20, I would call my buddies to go over [to] their houses to watch a game just so I could take a shower,” he recalled.
Nicholas paid his own way through Plymouth State University in Plymouth, New Hampshire, while living in his car because he couldn’t afford to pay both rent and tuition.
Nicholas Riccio Became a Real Estate Developer
Nicholas got his start in real estate after being inspired to remodel numerous condemned buildings on M Street in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire.
Per his Sunday Herald interview, Riccio started off buying one building that required him to put no money down. Within 12 years, his portfolio grew to include 15 buildings in the area.
Former Hampton police chief William Wrenn credited Riccio with helping make the community safer for the residents of Hampton Beach.
“I think Nick is certainly trying to change the whole image down there,” Wrenn told the Sunday Herald. “It’s an area we have had many difficulties with through the years.”
He added, “Nick is renovating buildings to a point where families will be interested in coming in. His properties are clean, they have new appliances and many nice renovations. He really is trying to change the image.”
Nicholas Riccio Met Karoline Leavitt During Her Congressional Campaign
Nicholas met his future wife, Leavitt, while she was running for a congressional seat in New Hampshire in 2022. (Leavitt won the Republican primary but lost to Democratic incumbent Chris Pappas in the general election.)
Leavitt revealed on The Megyn Kelly Show that she and Riccio quickly hit it off when they attended a New Hampshire event thrown by a mutual friend.
“A mutual friend of ours hosted an event at a restaurant that he owns up in New Hampshire and invited my husband,” she explained to host Megyn Kelly in February 2025. “I was speaking. We met, and we were acquainted as friends.”
Nicholas Riccio Is Older Than Karoline Leavitt’s Mother
Leavitt and Nicholas’ romance overcame some significant hurdles because of their 32-year age gap.
The White House press secretary recalled on the “Pod Force One With Miranda Devine” podcast in November 2025 that she had some awkward initial conversations with her parents because Nicholas is older than her mother, Erin Leavitt.
“It’s definitely a challenging conversation to have at first,” Karoline admitted. “But then, of course, once they got to know him and saw who he is as a man, and his character and how much he adores me, I think it became quite easy for them,”
She continued, “And now we’re all friends. I mean, it’s a typical family relationship. My husband has such respect for my parents and the way that they raised me, and we all have a lot of fun together when they come to visit.”
Nicholas Riccio and Karoline Leavitt Have 2 Children
The couple’s son, Niko, was born on July 10, 2024. Karoline cut her maternity leave from the Trump campaign short after three days, when the presidential candidate was shot in Butler County, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024.
Karoline announced her second pregnancy in December 2025 and was scheduled to take maternity leave starting on April 24, 2025. However, she made a temporary return to the White House press briefing room the following day to introduce a speech from Trump following the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting.
Karoline and Nicholas ultimately welcomed their second baby, daughter Vivi, on May 1, 2026.
“On May 1st, Viviana aka ‘Vivi’ joined our family, and our hearts instantly exploded with love. 💕,” Karoline announced via Instagram on May 7, 2026. “She is perfect and healthy, and her big brother is joyfully adjusting to life with his new baby sister. We are enjoying every moment in our blissful newborn bubble.”
Nicholas Riccio and Karoline Leavitt Got Married Days Before Donald Trump’s 2nd Inauguration
Karoline announced that Nicholas proposed over the Christmas holiday break in December 2023.
“The best Christmas of my life. ♥️💍,” she wrote via Instagram. “I get to marry the man of my dreams. I feel SO overwhelmingly BLESSED. Thank you God.”
Nicholas and Karoline exchanged vows at Wentworth By the Sea Country Club in Rye, New Hampshire on January 4, 2025. Karoline was once again back at work quickly for Trump when he took office for the second time on January 20, 2025.
