Gov. Ralph Northam (D) appointed Jehmal Hudson to the Virginia State Corporation Commission on June 9, making Hudson the first African American commissioner to serve on that body. Hudson succeeds former commissioner Patricia West, who served on the commission from March 2019 until her term expired in January 2020.

The Virginia State Corporation Commission consists of three members responsible for handling all charters “of domestic corporations and all licenses of foreign corporations to do business” within the Commonwealth of Virginia. In addition to serving as the primary filing office for corporations, the commission regulates the insurance, public utilities, securities, retail franchising, and railroad industries. Commissioner positions are officially nonpartisan.

The Virginia General Assembly typically elects state corporation commission members to six-year terms. In Hudson’s case, however, members of the legislature were unable to agree upon his appointment before the end of the legislative session in December 2019. As a result, Northam appointed Hudson to a temporary term that expires 30 days after the general assembly begins its next legislative session on January 13, 2021. The legislature will have the option to reappoint Hudson to a full term.