Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI) will serve as the next chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party after its current chairman announced he would leave Congress in April.

Moolenaar will succeed Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI), who was originally supposed to retire from the House at the end of this term but announced last week that his last day would be April 19, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced on Monday.

“I am thankful to the Speaker for this appointment, and I look forward to working with Ranking Member [Raja] Krishnamoorthi, the members of the Select Committee, House leaders, and the standing committees in the weeks and months ahead,” Moolenaar said in a statement. “Together, we can help our country prepare for the challenges we face from the Chinese Communist Party and win the competition against the CCP.”

Moolenaar added that he is “grateful” for Gallagher’s leadership on the select committee, which was established once the GOP took the House majority in January 2023.

“He has been an incredible leader for our country as a member of the military, and as a member of Congress, where he was instrumental in creating the Select Committee,” the Michigan Republican said. “His selfless and faithful stewardship of the Select Committee has been a tremendous success and benefited the American people.”

Gallagher’s departure joined the exodus of several chairpersons. On the same day Gallagher announced his early leave, Appropriations Committee Chairwoman and retiring Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX) asked Johnson to look for a new chairperson just hours after the House passed the final fiscal 2024 spending bills. Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Patrick McHenry (R-NC), who lead the prestigious House Energy and Commerce Committee and Financial Services Committee, respectively, are also retiring but plan to finish their terms.

Johnson praised Moolenaar in a statement on Monday, expressing confidence that the country will be “well-served by his wisdom and guidance.”

“John Moolenaar will be an exceptional chairman for the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party,” the speaker said. “His leadership experience in the private and public sectors, his academic background, and his principled service in Congress have earned John the respect of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle.”

In a statement provided first to the Washington Examiner, the retiring Wisconsin congressman said Moolenaar will be an “incredible leader” for the select committee.

“John understands the grave military, economic, and ideological threat posed by the CCP and will continue to advance an agenda that will best position our country to fight and win the strategic competition between the United States and our nation’s foremost adversary, the Chinese Communist Party,” Gallagher said.

Gallagher’s early exit will bring the Republican majority to 217-213 on April 19, creating a math problem for Johnson both legislatively and personally. The speaker is facing a motion to vacate filed by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), which requires only a simple majority to pass.

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If all Democrats vote to oust Johnson, the speaker can only afford to lose two Republican votes under that majority, so Johnson may need to rally support on the other side of the aisle to keep his gavel.

The Washington Examiner reached out to Gallagher for comment on Moolenaar’s appointment.