Meghan McCain announces she is leaving ‘The View’

On Thursday, July 1, Meghan McCain announced that she’s leaving  The View.

“I’m just going to rip the bandaid off. I am here to tell all of you, my wonderful cohorts and viewers at home: This is going to be my last season here at   The View,” she said at the top of the show.

McCain went on to say that it was “not an easy decision” and that she will be with The View until its current season ends, which is through the end of the month.

“On a professional note, this show is one of the hands-down greatest most exhilarating most wonderful privileges of my entire life,” she continued.

While McCain was known for her tension with her other co-hosts, that doesn’t seem to be the reason she’s leaving the series. Meghan said that her decision was motivated by her desire to remain in Washington, DC, area near family after giving birth to a daughter in late 2020.

After making her big announcement, McCain’s co-hosts praised her, with Whoopi Goldberg saying it had been “wonderful” to have her as a colleague on the show. Joy Behar, who constantly battled with McCain on the program, said she was a “formidable opponent” and “no snowflake.”

Still, McCain had previously considered leaving the daytime talk show over the rivalry with her co-hosts.

Back in 2019, CNN reported that Meghan was seriously thinking about departing the show due to feeling dejected and sabotaged by her colleagues at ABC. That was according to two people familiar with the matter at the time. One of whom told the outlet that McCain didn’t “think it’s worth it anymore.”

Her departure comes after four years on the show after joining in 2017, when she replaced Jedediah Bila as the conservative voice on the program.

In addition to McCain, The View was co-hosted this season by Behar, Goldberg, Sara Haines, and Sunny Hostin.

In a statement about her departure, ABC News praised Meghan McCain, saying she “brought her fierce determination and vast political knowledge and experience” to the show.

“She recently came to us with her decision to depart the show at the end of this season, a difficult choice that she made for her and her family that we respect and understand,” the statement said. “We wish the best for Meghan as she plans her next chapter, and thank her for the passion and unique voice that she shared with us and our viewers each day.”