Howard Schultz stepping down as Starbucks CEO

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is stepping down from his role, the company announced Thursday.

{mosads}Schultz will become the executive chairman and will focus on the Starbucks Reserve Roasteries and the company’s social impact initiatives. He will continue to serve as chairman of the company’s board.

Kevin Johnson, current president and chief operating officer at the company, will assume the role of CEO.

The changes will take effect on April 3.

Schultz supported Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton during the presidential campaign and has in the past spoken out against Donald Trump.

“We’ve seen such vitriolic display of bigotry and hate and divisiveness, and that is not the leadership we need for the future of the country,” Schultz said about Trump in September.

Following Trump’s victory, he said he was “stunned” but wanted to give the president-elect a chance to lead.

In a public letter sent to his company after the election, he said “we must honor the democratic process” and give the president-elect “the opportunity to govern well and bring our country together.”

“Whether you are pleased or disappointed by the outcome, we each still have a choice,” he wrote.

“Today and every day, we have a choice in how we treat one another in our homes, in our neighborhoods, and of course in our stores.”

Trump supporters objected when Schultz endorsed Clinton, and the president-elect last year blasted the chain’s plainspoken, non-religious holiday cups.

Since the election, Trump supporters have been giving the president-elect’s name to baristas to mark their orders with their support.