Callista Gingrich

Callista Louise Gingrich (née Bisek; is an American diplomat, businesswoman, author, and documentary film producer who is the United States ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. She served as the United States ambassador to the Holy See from 2017 to 2021.

She has also served as president and chief executive officer of Gingrich 360, a multimedia production and consulting company based in Arlington, Virginia and is married to former House Speaker and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich.

She graduated as valedictorian from Whitehall Memorial High School in 1984. A music student from childhood, Callista attended Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, majoring in music and becoming a member of Pi Kappa Lambda. She graduated cum laude in 1988.

Career

In 1988, just out of college, Gingrich accepted an internship in Washington, D.C., in the office of Republican Congressman Steve Gunderson.

Multimedia productions Gingrich arrived in Rome on November 6, 2017, for the ambassadorship. After leaving the House Committee on Agriculture in 2007, Gingrich served as president of Gingrich Productions, a multimedia production company which she founded with her husband.

Gingrich co-authored Rediscovering God in America with her husband, Newt Gingrich. On December 22, 2017, Gingrich presented her credentials to Pope Francis and officially assumed the duties of United States Ambassador to the Holy See. She was the 11th U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See since formal relations were established in 1984 under President Ronald Reagan.

Gingrich assumed the role of Ambassador after several instances of high-profile criticism of Donald Trump and his policies by Pope Francis and his allies. During her tenure, Gingrich focused on advancing areas of common ground between Washington and the Vatican, and combatting human trafficking. In June 2018, Gingrich helped return a letter written by Christopher Columbus that had been stolen from the Vatican Archives. She also highlighted the role of women religious on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and in conflict zones and helped Samaritan's Purse bring an emergency field hospital, doctors and nurses to an area of northern Italy hit hard by COVID-19. a post to which she was confirmed in September 2025. In June 2026, Gingrich went viral for a social media message wishing Team USA luck in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Commentators described her delivery as awkward or robotic, with some comparing it to generative AI.

Awards and honors

In February 2018, Gingrich was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Ave Maria School of Law.

In 2019, she received the Sue M. Cobb Award, one of the highest recognitions at the U.S. Department of State for exemplary diplomatic service.

In June 2020, Gingrich was appointed Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Pius IX by Pope Francis, the highest distinction conferred by the Holy See on laypersons, in recognition of her contributions to the Church and society. On February 10, she appeared at the Conservative Political Action Conference, giving an introduction to her husband prior to his speech. In addition, she supported his campaign through speaking appearances at Republican women's groups, meetings of Gingrich supporters, and various rallies.

Other activities Gingrich serves as president of the Gingrich Foundation. Callista testified in 1999 as part of Gingrich's divorce proceedings that the couple began a six-year affair in 1993 while Newt was married to his second wife, Marianne.

Newt divorced Marianne in December 1999, and on August 18, 2000, Callista and Newt were married in a private ceremony in Alexandria, Virginia. Callista, a lifelong Catholic, was instrumental in her husband's conversion to that faith in 2009.