Adams, Cameron sworn in as Kentucky Secretary of State, Attorney General

(Jan. 9, 2020) By GlyptusAnn Grider Jones
Adams, Cameron sworn in as Kentucky Secretary of State, Attorney General

McConnell Scholar alumni Michael Adams ('98) and Daniel Cameron ('08)

Michael Adams, a 1998 graduate of the McConnell Scholars Program, and Daniel Cameron, a 2008 graduate, were sworn in Jan. 6 as Kentucky's 77th Secretary of State and 51st Attorney General, respectively.

Adams, a native of Paducah, was a member of the third class of McConnell Scholars at the University of Louisville, which he credits for offering the leadership enrichment he needed to succeed in graduate school.

"The McConnell Center not only gave me the credentials to be competitive in applying to Ivy League law schools but gave me the confidence and analytical skills to succeed once I arrived," said Adams, who was the first in his family to earn a bachelor's degree.

He graduated from Harvard Law School, returning to Kentucky to clerk for Chief U.S. District Judge John Heyburn. He served as Deputy General Counsel to Governor Ernie Fletcher before moving to Washington to serve as Counsel to the U.S. Deputy Attorney General in the second George W. Bush Administration. His private practice in election law included serving as General Counsel to the Republican Governors Association.

Cameron, a native of Elizabethtown, was sworn in at Louisville Law's Allen Court Room Monday at midnight.

He played on the football team as an undergraduate and went on to become president of the Brandeis School of Law's Student Bar Association and a member of the Louisville Law Review. He clerked for the Hon. Gregory Van Tatenhove, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, served as U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell's legal counsel and entered private practice at Stites & Harbison and Frost Brown Todd before winning statewide office.

"The McConnell Center is proud of all of our McConnell Scholars who put themselves out there to work on political campaigns, no matter the outcome," said Director Gary Gregg. "We congratulate Daniel and Michael as the first McConnell Scholars to win statewide elections in Kentucky."