Story highlights Nick Ayers will take over the reins

He replaces Josh Pitcock

Washington (CNN) Vice President Mike Pence announced Thursday that he will have a new chief of staff.

Nick Ayers will take over the reins as the new top aide to the vice president, replacing Josh Pitcock, who has been with Pence in the role since the inauguration, Pence's office said in a statement.

Both men are longtime Pence confidantes, and Ayers is a known Georgia and national political consultant. He also served as campaign chairman for the Pence side of the Trump campaign.

A source close to the vice president said that the change of hands has been in the works for a while, insisting it not a shakeup, and the timing was to coincide with the congressional recess.

Ayers will start in mid-July in a transitioning phase.

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