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Military Service: Army

BOB MCDONNELL was one year old in 1955 when his father, USAF Lt. Colonel John McDonnell, moved the family to Fairfax County. McDonnell graduated from Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, Virginia in 1972. McDonnell attended the University of Notre Dame on a ROTC scholarship, graduating with a BBA in Management in 1976. McDonnell served as a medical supply officer in the United States Army for four years and in the U.S. Army Reserve for 16 years, retiring with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. McDonnell received a MSBA from Boston University in1980 and a MA/JD from the Regent University School of Law in 1989.McDonnell put his business degrees and military experience to use with American Hospital Supply Corporation, a Fortune 500 company.

McDonnell began his career in public service as a prosecutor in the Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office. In November 1991, Bob was elected to the House of Delegates representing the 84th District in Virginia Beach. He served 14 years in the Virginia House of Delegates from Virginia Beach, rising to chairman of the powerful Courts of Justice Committee, and as assistant majority leader.

On January 14, 2006, McDonnell took the oath of office as attorney general of Virginia. As attorney general, he enacted a 25-year mandatory minimum sentence for violent child sex predators and increased penalties for drug dealers. He worked to strengthen Virginia’s mental health laws, crack down on animal fighting, establish a “Senior Alert” to assist in locating missing seniors with mental deficiencies, create a state of the art sex offender registry, and provide new tools for law enforcement involved in online investigations of identity theft, sexual predators, and other 21st-Century criminals. He created and led Virginia’s Youth Internet Safety Task Force.

McDonnell was elected on November 3, 2009 and was sworn in on January 16, 2010 as the 71st Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

McDonnell and his wife Maureen have five children – Jeanine, Cailin, Rachel, Bobby, and Sean.