Rep. Gallagher’s early resignation shrinks already thin House Republican majority

(WLUK) — Northeast Wisconsin is reacting following 8th District Congressman Mike Gallagher’s decision to leave his position earlier than originally thought.

Gallagher says he’ll be ending his time as an elected representative on April 19. The announcement comes less than two months after Gallagher announced he would not seek re-election.

That means a portion of Northeast Wisconsin will be without representation in the House until next year.

“There are implications there because representatives represent their constituents in a variety of different ways, not just lawmaking,” said UW-Green Bay Political Science Professor David Helpap.

FOX 11 reached out to Gallagher for comment, but he was unavailable for interview. In his announcement Friday, Gallagher said in part:

I’ve worked closely with House Republican leadership on this timeline and look forward to seeing Speaker Johnson appoint a new chair to carry out the important mission of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. My office will continue to operate and provide constituent services to the Eighth District for the remainder of the term.

Gallagher’s seat won’t be filled until January when the new Congress is officially sworn in. The Republican Party of Brown County says it’s not on board with Gallagher’s decision. A statement to FOX 11 read:

The Republican Party of Brown County is profoundly disappointed with Congressman Mike Gallagher’s recent decision to resign from Congress effective in April. While we are still working through the legal and procedural issues arising from the timing of this decision, we urge Congressman Gallagher to serve out his term and fulfill the promises he made to his constituents who elected him.

Across the aisle, Democrats want answers as to why exactly Gallagher decided not to seek re-election.

“It’s interesting the way he’s going about his exit and while I would like for him to maybe give a press conference and explain what he’s thinking. You can read between the lines pretty easily here and see that he’s just had enough of the dysfunction,” said Christy Welch, chair for the Democratic Party of Brown Co.

Gallagher’s final day falls on a Friday — after which, the Republican majority in the House will shrink.

Republicans will hold 217 seats, compared to 213 seats held by the Democrats.

The vacancy will mean the GOP can only withstand a single party member flipping their vote. If any more do the same, Republicans will no longer have the “simple majority” needed to unilaterally pass bills.

“It makes a challenging situation even more challenging,” said Helpap.

With roughly eight months until the November elections, Gallagher’s early exit is putting even more of a spotlight on Washington.

Source: Rep. Gallagher’s early resignation shrinks already thin House Republican majority