The Honorable Robert F. McDonnell

Governor McDonnell began his career in public office representing the 84th District in the Virginia House of Delegates, where he served seven terms from 1991 to 2006. He was elected Virginia Attorney General in 2005 and was inaugurated January of 2006. In November 2009 he was elected the 71st Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia with the most votes of any candidate in history at the time, serving from 2010 to 2014. He also served 4 1⁄2 years of active duty in the United States Army and 16 years in the United States Army Reserves, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1997. After active military service, he worked for the Fortune 500 Company American Hospital Supply Corporation as an operations manager. He began his legal career in 1990 as a Virginia Beach prosecutor, and was later a partner with the law firm of Huff, Poole, and Mahoney. Currently, he teaches law and government at Regent University and is also a Distinguished Professor at George Mason University and Liberty University. Additionally, he is the president and founder of the McDonnell Group, a firm that focuses on consulting and business development. He has rejoined the Virginia Beach law firm, Poole, Brooke, Plumlee PC. He is also a regular contributor on Newsmax T.V., and a member of the Board of Directors of Delta Star, Inc.

Governor McDonnell has a BBA in management from the University of Notre Dame, an MSBA from Boston University, and a JD and MA from Regent University. He is the leader of the racial reconciliation group, Virginians for Reconciliation, and on the Boards of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Beach Sister Cities Association, and the Samaritan House Foundation. He has served in various political leadership roles as Chairman of the National Republican Platform Committee (2012), and as Chairman of both the Republican Attorneys General Association (2008) and the Republican Governors Association (2011-2012). He has 5 adult children and 8 grandchildren.