The Pentagon announced June 9, 2022, that Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Michael Langley has been appointed to the rank of general with an assignment as the next leader of U.S. Africa Command in Stuttgart, Germany. (U.S. Marine Corps)

Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Michael Langley is President Joe Biden’s pick to be the next commander of U.S. Africa Command, the Pentagon announced Thursday.

Biden also nominated Langley for promotion to general, and if the Senate confirms him, he would become the first Black four-star general in the Marine Corps’ 246-year history.

He would succeed Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, who has led the Stuttgart, Germany-based command since July 2019.

Langley currently heads up Marine Forces Command and Marine Forces Northern Command and is the commander of Fleet Marine Force Atlantic in Norfolk, Va. He’s been in that job only since November 2021.

Prior to that, Langley commanded U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa for one year. His predecessor at the Stuttgart-area headquarters was removed amid allegations of use of a racial slur for African Americans in front of troops.

A native of Shreveport, La., Langley graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington and was commissioned in 1985.

During his 37-year career, Langley has commanded at every level from platoon to regiment and has served overseas in Okinawa, Afghanistan and Somalia.