Gov. Maura Healey will tap Rep. Jon Santiago of Boston, a major in the U.S. Army Reserve, as the state's next veterans' services secretary, Healey announced Friday morning.

Santiago recently returned from an overseas deployment, and Healey plans to swear him in on March 1, the date that the veterans' secretariat rises to the Cabinet level under a 2022 reform law.

Speculation arose Thursday about Santiago's future in the House after he unusually received no committee assignments for the upcoming term. His departure will likely lead to a special election for a Boston seat that begins in Copley Square and reaches down into Dorchester, around the area of the South Bay shopping plaza.

In addition to his military service, Santiago is an emergency medicine physician at Boston Medical Center, and his appointment comes during a time of increased scrutiny at the state-run long term care facilities for veterans. The veterans' secretary will be "the ultimate appointing authority of the superintendents" of the two soldiers' homes in Holyoke and Chelsea, according to Healey's office.

"Representative Santiago has dedicated his life to serving his country -- whether that's volunteering for the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic, working in the emergency room throughout COVID, being deployed overseas with the U.S. Army Reserve, or advocating for increased access to housing, public transportation and substance use disorder treatment in the State House," Healey said in a statement Friday. "His public health expertise and military service make him uniquely qualified to serve as Massachusetts' first ever Secretary of Veterans' Services. I'm confident that he will be the leader our veterans need and deserve and will always stand up for their health, safety and wellbeing."

Born in Puerto Rico, Santiago studied biology and religious studies at the University of Texas at Austin, earned a master's in public health at the University of Washington at Seattle, and graduated Yale School of Medicine. He volunteered with the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic.

The South End resident was reelected last November to a third term, after running for Boston mayor in 2021 but dropping out of that race. He first entered the House in 2019 after defeating longtime incumbent Rep. Byron Rushing in a Democratic primary the previous fall.

After Healey's announcement, Joseph Betancourt, a doctor and former executive on equity and community health for Massachusetts General Hospital, released a statement on behalf of the statewide coalition of Latino leaders, Unidos in Power.

"As a state Representative, Jon Santiago has cultivated strong political ties that can be used to secure funding for our veterans. As an ER doctor, he is a healer who knows the challenges faced by our wounded warriors," he said. "And as a Latino leader, he will provide a strong voice for our community in this newly elevated cabinet position. We will continue to work intentionally with Gov. Healey to fulfil the need for additional Latino leaders across her administration.”

Reporter managing editor Gintautas Dumcius contributed to this report.