Feb. 10 (UPI) — Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.) said Saturday he will not seek reelection in November, making him the fourth Republican to leave the House GOP’s shrinking majority.
Gallagher’s announcement to leave came days after his controversial vote not to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Some pro-Trump Republican colleagues threatened to primary him over the decision.
“The Framers intended citizens to serve in Congress for a season and then return to their private lives,” Gallagher said. “Electoral politics was never supposed to be a career and, trust me, Congress is no place to grow old.”
Reps. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) and Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) also voted against impeachment, which led to the effort failing.
Gallagher stood by his decision to defect from GOP leadership, saying he had made his position known for a while and criticized Republicans for calling a vote without knowing whether it would pass.
Gallagher chairs the House Select Committee on China and is the latest committee chair to announce his departure as well. House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) House Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger (R-Texas) and Services Committee Chair Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) previously said they would not seek reelection.
The 39-year-old Marine and Iraq War veteran has represented his Green Bay-based district since 2017. His retirement announcement marks a reversal from his original intent last year to seek another term in his district.
He previously dashed Republicans’ hopes that he would run in the Senate to unseat Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.).
Gallagher’s departure builds on an already historic rate of House retirements for both parties, but the thinning of the ranks is more dire among top Republicans.