After nearly a year of rotating guest hosts, Jenna Bush Hager has chosen Sheinelle Jones as her permanent co-host for “Today with Jenna & Friends.”

On Tuesday morning, the 44-year-old anchor revealed that 47-year-old Jones will officially join her on the newly renamed “Today with Jenna & Sheinelle” starting in the New Year, succeeding Hoda Kotb.

Jones is set to begin her new role alongside Bush Hager on January 12, while Craig Melvin, Al Roker, and Dylan Dreyer will continue their roles as co-hosts of the Third Hour.

Expressing her excitement for the future of the show, Bush Hager shared her sentiments with Jones during Tuesday’s episode, saying, “I am so excited.”

“Everything you mentioned about what we aim to create together—bringing hope and sharing friendship—resonates with me. There’s no one else I’d rather have by my side,” she added warmly.

During their heartfelt announcement, Jones revealed that her predecessor Kotb, 61, called her on Monday night and offered some words of wisdom.

‘She gave me 45 seconds of just wisdom that changed me,’ she said.

‘She said, “remember this moment. You are going to talk about how this was a moment that changed your career, and it was the best decision for your kids, for you.”

Jenna Bush Hager has officially announced her permanent Today show co-host

The presenter will host the fourth hour of Today with beloved broadcaster Sheinelle Jones

‘She was like, ‘working with Jenna is going to better than you could ever imagine. You are going to love it.”‘

Jones’s promotion comes seven months after the death of her husband Uche Ojeh from glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. 

‘A year ago at this time, I decided I should step back and be with my husband,’ she tearfully told viewers on Tuesday.

‘And we were in a fight. And, you know, you couldn’t write this script.’

Jones has been part of the Today show team for over a decade. She initially joined the Weekend Today team in 2014 before going on to become a co-host on the Third Hour Today in 2019.

In November 2024, the broadcaster took family medical leave from NBC News to care for her sick husband and their three children following his cancer diagnosis.

Jones returned to the Today show in September where she gave a tearful interview to co-host Savannah Guthrie about how she was dealing with grief.

‘My heart is shattered in a million pieces,’ she told Guthrie.

Jones isa regular Today show fixture and has co-hosted the 3rd hour of Today since 2019

Bush Hager gushed there is ‘nobody I’d rather sit next to’ as she confirmed Jones’s position

Bush Hager previously co-hosted the program with Hoda Kotb before her exit in January 

‘The life that I’ve known since I was 19 is no more. I always wanted kids, and I have three kids of my own now and they’ve lost their dad and I’m their mom. It sucks. 

‘So how am I doing? You know, it’s day-to-day. I’m proud of myself for, you know, how I’ve coped so far.

‘I’m proud of my kids for how we’ve been able to try to pull through. But it’s… it’s horrible. It’s just horrible. But I’m here.’

Bush Hager had been on the search for a permanent co-anchor for 11 months following the exit of Kotb January.

The pair had co-hosted the program – Today with Hoda & Jenna – for five years, with Kotb previously fronting the show with Kathie Lee Gifford.

Over the past year, Bush Hager presented Today with Jenna & Friends alongside rotating guest stars, which included her husband Henry Hager and the wildly popular Scarlett Johansson, to name but a few.

In February, a Today show insider told the Daily Mail that bosses were not in a rush to land on a new presenter to replace Kotb.

‘There has been no permanent cohost decision for today with Jenna & Friends,’ they said at the time.

‘There is no reason to make a decision now. There’s been a lot of people vying for the opportunity to guest co-host.’ 

Bush Hager confirmed to Daily Mail in April that she would eventually land on someone permanent.

She said: ‘We are totally enjoying having this rotation, but we will get a permanent host because we want the audience to feel that connection that Hoda and I had.

‘I think this has been really fun and it’s been a challenge for me. It’s been a challenge for our producing team – who are incredible – but I think at some point we will have a permanent host because I think the audience wants that connection.’