WASHINGTON, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he will nominate State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert to replace outgoing Nikki Haley as ambassador to the United Nations.

"Heather Nauert will be nominated for the ambassador to the United Nations," Trump told reporters on Friday morning before departing the White House for a conference in the state of Missouri.

Nauert, a 48-year-old former Fox News host, assumed her current post in April 2017. She was reportedly a "leading contender" for the envoy post after Haley announced her resignation in October.