Vatican Ambassador Donnelly to step down in July

Vatican Ambassador Joe Donnelly plans to step down from his post on July 8 and return to his hometown of Granger, Indiana, he told POLITICO on Thursday.

“It’s been an amazing privilege to serve the Country and the President,” Donnelly said in a text message.

Donnelly previously said he would stay in his post this year amid talk that the former senator and congressman was weighing a return to politics, running for senate or governor.

The Hoosier Democrat and devout Catholic has found himself at the center of President Joe Biden’s administration’s efforts to manage diplomacy with Pope Francis amid Russia’s war against Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza.

Last July, Donnelly accompanied Cardinal Matteo Zuppi to Washington for a meeting with Biden about providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine and the Vatican's efforts to repatriate Ukrainian children.

The Senate-confirmable position — which Biden considers first among equals — comes at a crucial time abroad for the White House amid an election year.

The White House directed inquiries to the State Department.

A spokesperson for the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The move is likely to reignite talk that former speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) could end her career by serving Biden at the Vatican. A spokesperson for Pelosi immediately threw cold water on the idea, posting to X a one-word message “no.”