Hunton Andrews Kurth Hires Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe

Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has joined Hunton Andrews Kurth as a global strategy adviser in the firm’s privacy and cybersecurity think tank in Washington.

The former national Democratic National Committee chairman will provide counsel to the Centre for Information Policy Leadership as well as to the firm and to clients.

He served as Virginia governor from 2014-18, during which he focused efforts on boosting the state’s cybersecurity sectors.

“Data protection is top of mind for every business leader, regulator and lawmaker as they work to navigate a rapidly changing technology environment and to safeguard digital trust,” CIPL President Bojana Bellamy said in a statement. “The experience Gov. McAuliffe brings to CIPL will ensure we are best positioning our members and the firm’s clients from a policy and business standpoint, while helping us be forward-thinking in the development of solutions for privacy and responsible data use.”

McAuliffe cut his teeth in politics as national finance director for former President Jimmy Carter. He earned a law degree from Georgetown before becoming an entrepreneur, co-founding Washington-based Federal City National Bank, among other businesses.

He later served as co-chair of Bill Clinton’s 1996 re-election campaign, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and chairman of Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign.

While governor of Virginia, McAuliffe served as chairman of the National Governors Association, where he led an initiative to focus on cybersecurity. He also created a state scholarship fund for students studying cybersecurity.

McAuliffe said in a statement that he believes cyber risks to be one of the biggest threats to U.S. national security.

“By 2020, 200 billion networked devices are expected to be connected across the globe,” he said. “Domestic and foreign actors target sensitive information and systems that, if compromised, could have significant economic and political consequences for all Americans.”