UPDATE, with video Abby Huntsman announced on The View today that she is leaving the show to help run her father Jon Huntsman‘s gubernatorial campaign in Utah, as well as to spend more time with her family.
“This panel is pretty special,” she said on The View. “It always will go down as a pretty crucial time for this show, and I always will appreciate this opportunity, but as you guys known, my number one priority has always been my family.”
She said that when she was initially asked by her father to join his campaign, she thought that it was not the right time. But over the holidays, she said, “when you take a step back and you think about life and you think about your kids and you think about what you want to do every day that just gets you going, and there is no one I believe in more than my own dad right now.”
She said that her final day on the show will be on Friday.
Watch her announcement below.
Huntsman will serve as senior adviser to her father’s campaign.
Huntsman has co-hosted The View since September, 2018. She previously worked as co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend and as a reporter for Fox News Channel.
Jon Huntsman, who ran for president in 2012, resigned as U.S. ambassador to Russia last year, and later announced his bid to return to the governorship of Utah. He was elected governor in 2004, and reelected in 2008 before resigning that post to become U.S. ambassador to China under President Barack Obama.
He tweeted about his daughter’s decision.
“I’m thrilled @huntsmanabby has decided to join our campaign team full time as a senior advisor! Her years of experience on the national stage will be an enormous asset to our campaign. Excited to have her energy on the trail. Family is everything!”
When Jon Huntsman launched his gubernatorial campaign in November, he came to his daughter for help, and over the holidays asked her to take a major role, according to a source familiar with her plans. She and her husband, Jeffrey Bruce Livingston, have three children — all under the age of 3 — and she will commute to Utah for the time being.
In a staff memo, Abby Huntsman wrote, “ABC has been my family for a long time and I am so thankful to have had a seat at the table on an iconic show like The View. After much deliberation over the holidays, I have decided to leave the show to dedicate myself full-time in support of my dad and his campaign for Governor of Utah.
She added, “You know I think the world of all of you. You’re some of the most talented, hard-working and genuine people I’ve ever worked with. The staff is the engine of the show and you never get enough credit for what you do. I applaud you and thank you for welcoming me to the family on day-one. You always made me look much better than I ever could have on my own. Thank you for believing in me and for all the laughs along the way.”
Hilary Estey McLoughlin, Candi Carter and Brian Teta, the executive producers of The View, wrote in a memo to staff, “We thank Abby for her unique, intelligent, insightful and relatable voice that she brought to the show both in front of and behind the camera. We will truly miss her and her great spirit professionally and personally.”
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