Former New York North Country Congressman John McHugh will step down from his job as Secretary of the Army no later than November. According to the Department of Defense, McHugh expressed his desire to leave the position several weeks ago.

According to the DOD press release, McHugh "expressed his gratitude to the president and his appreciation to the Secretary of Defense and, most importantly, the men and women of the United States Army for the tremendous honor to serve as Secretary for these many years."

McHugh, a Republican, was tapped by Democratic President Barack Obama to serve as Army Secretary in 2008, when he was in his ninth term in the U.S. Congress. McHugh was a vocal backer of Fort Drum, near Watertown, N.Y., and was instrumental in the base's buildup in the 2000s in the wake of the 9-11 terrorist attacks of 2001.

Carl McLaughlin of the Fort Drum Regional Liaison Organization praised McHugh as "a balanced leader" who did not give preferential treatment to Fort Drum, but rather thought of the Army as a whole. McLaughlin said he is not surprised McHugh chose to end his tenure. "It's a long time to serve. He has been serving for quite a few years, and they've been tough years," he said.

McHugh oversaw the Army during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as during the ongoing post-war downsizing that expected to see troop levels decline from 520,000, in 2014, to 450,000, with possible deeper sequestration cuts.

According to Army Times, McHugh held the top Army post longer than anyone since John Marsh Jr. in 1981. McHugh is second in seniority among currently serving Defense Secretaries.

Secretary of Defense Ash Carter called McHugh "a tremendous public servant" who helped the Army through "a period of challenge and change." Carter said, "There will be much time in the coming months to appropriately celebrate his many accomplishments, but for now I will just say that every soldier is better off because of his hard work and vision, and so is the country."

Below is the full press release from the DOD:

IMMEDIATE RELEASE No. NR-221-15

June 08, 2015