Who is Kristi Noem, the gun-loving Homeland chief who has been sacked by her hero Donald Trump?
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Donald Trump has sacked Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in his first major reshuffle during his second term in office.
The president was previously reluctant to follow her line that an ICE officer shot protestor Alex Pretti in “self defence” earlier this year, and has now replaced her with Oklahoma Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin.
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Mr Trump made the announcement on social media on Thursday, two days after Ms Noem faced a grilling on Capitol Hill from Republican members as well as Democrats.
He said he will make Ms Noem a "special envoy for The Shield of the Americas", a new security initiative that he said would focus on the western hemisphere.
Ms Noem had been touted as a potential Republican nominee for the 2028 US election, her future is now unclear.
What happened with Alex Pretti?
Professional nurse Mr Pretti was shot 10 times in five seconds by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on January 24. This made him the second anti-ICE protestor killed in the state this month after Renee Good .
Ms Noem maintained that Mr Pretti posed a threat and said in the aftermath: "Individuals showed up to impede a law enforcement operation and assaulted our officers. They responded according to their training, and took action to defend the officer's life and those of the public around him.”
Mr Trump, however, wrote on Truth Social: "I don't like any shooting. I don't like it.”
Border Czar Tom Homan was then dispatched to manage ICE operations in Minnesota .
Quick factfile: Kristi Noem
Answering the internet’s most asked questions:
Age: 54,
Height: 5ft 7, 1m 71,
Husband: She has three children with Bryon Noem (married 1992) and is also a grandmother. Ms Noem has repeatedly denied she has had an affair with her colleague Corey Lewandowski,
Religion: Protestant Christian,
Dog: Noem has owned several animals on her family’s ranch in South Dakota. She admitted in her autobiography that she had shot and killed a 14-month old troublesome pet dog as well as a goat and at least three horses.
Who is Kristi Noem?
Kristi Noem was Secretary of Homeland Security, a role she held from January 2025, when she was hired by Donald Trump, upon his inauguration, to March 2026.
A lifelong Republican member, she has previously served as a House of Representatives member for her home state of South Dakota and then, from 2019 to 2025, as the state’s governor. She has been loyal to her birth state and has always lived between Washington DC and with her family – even sleeping on her office floor in the capital to save money.
Her celebrity began to rise during the pandemic for her state being the only one where businesses were not ordered to close. She became close to Mr Trump during the pandemic and there had even been talk of a bid for the vice presidency, but when this fell to JD Vance, she took on the role as secretary of Homeland Security.
She was, however, sacked as Homeland chief in March 2026 and replaced by Markwayne Mullin.
Mr Trump instead made her "special envoy for The Shield of the Americas", a new security initiative that he said would focus on the western hemisphere.
He wrote on Truth Social: "The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida.
"I thank Kristi for her service at Homeland."
What are Kristi Noem’s political views?
Ms Noem takes a typically conservative and right wing stance for most issues facing American culture and society.
Her positions on social issues would be considered to be far right and out of the mainstream by British standards, however her conservatism in the US is more commonplace within Republican circles.
Here are some of her leanings with some examples:
Time as Homeland chief
The BBC has described her as the “poster girl” for Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration and Ms Noem has been integral to the rise of ICE agents completing operations.
She has completed trips to Guantanamo Bay and visited a prison in El Salvador, which was filled with American deportees, and has live streamed raids completed by ICE on homes.
Ms Noem fronted a taxpayer funded advert, which played across America telling illegal immigrants to leave the US. She starred in the advert that was designed to play out to travellers moving through US domestic airports, blaming delays on the Democrats. In response, several airports refused to show the adverts.
Her viral ability and high profile have led her to be known as the “ICE Barbie,” a nickname she is said to be pleased with.
A celebrity politician
Like Mr Trump, building a personal brand has been central to Ms Noem’s rise into the mainstream – but unlike the president, she has played up a rural upbringing and has been photographed riding horses on multiple occasions.
“She often wore cowboy boots around DC,” a source told the BBC, adding that she took a shift in 2019 when she began to adopt more of a Trumpian persona, wearing MAGA baseball caps and sharing his views on social media.
While the job of becoming Homeland chief was an unusual fit for a former beauty pageant winner, she put her own spin on the role right away by walking out for her induction to country and western music.
Kristi Noem’s changing appearance
Perhaps seen as one of the faces of the Republican party, Ms Noem has also been said to have a Republican face – also known as “Mar-a-Lago face” – with heavy make-up and a reported use of cosmetic procedures, fillers and dental work.
Before and after photos are often shared of Ms Noem around the internet from 2016, showing her striking physical transformation.
But although she may have had help for some of her physical transformation, she has also worked out hard, according to one associate – who spoke to the BBC. “She will kick your tuchus in the gym,” the source added.