Boisterous Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) is headlining a wave of members of the hard-line House Freedom Caucus who are seeking higher office and will depart the lower chamber after the midterms, setting the House Republican Conference up for a transformation in its most rambunctious wing.

Roy, one of the most vocal and central players in the Freedom Caucus, announced on Thursday he will run for Texas attorney general.

Several other notable Freedom Caucus members are seeking higher office, too: Reps. Andy Biggs (Ariz.), Byron Donalds (Fla.), and Ralph Norman (S.C.) are running for governor; Rep. Barry Moore (Ala.) launched a Senate bid last week; and Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) is interested in being appointed to the Senate if Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) wins the governorship.

Some members hope that the departures of those members who have often cause headaches will lead to greater GOP harmony and less chaos in Congress.

“I wish Chip Roy nothing but the best. I hope he does very well,” said Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), who often criticizes the House Freedom Caucus.

“The outcome of Chip leaving is a more productive Congress. He’s been a contrarian, and he’s been an obstructionist,” Van Orden said.

But sources in GOP leadership and other Republicans who have been at the center of major negotiations with Roy see him as an important bridge between the Freedom Caucus and the rest of the House GOP and someone who negotiates in good faith. And they wonder who will fill that role in the next Congress.

“My hope is that we'll have members from the Freedom Caucus step up to fill that void, because there's a there's a need for us to continue to work together,” said Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.), who negotiated with Roy as a leader in the Republican Main Street Caucus, which sees itself as more pragmatic.

Hardline resistance to GOP leadership has held up major........

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