Nelson W. Cunningham co-founded McLarty Associates in 1998 and led the firm for almost 25 years. Under his leadership, McLarty Associates developed into a firm with a global reach and over 100 employees and advisors in 21 countries.
Previously, Mr. Cunningham worked in the White House as Special Advisor to President Clinton on Western Hemisphere affairs and as General Counsel at the Office of Administration. He also served as General Counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee, under then-Chairman Joe Biden. Before moving to Washington, Mr. Cunningham was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York.
Mr. Cunningham served as a volunteer advisor to the 2020 Biden for President campaign and was a member of the Obama-Biden Transition Team. He also served as a foreign policy and trade advisor to John Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign, as well as to several other Senate and political campaigns.
Mr. Cunningham is the Vice Chair of the Business Council for International Understanding. He is a member of the boards of Yale-NUS College in Singapore, the American Security Project, the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, and the Institute of the Americas. He is also a member of the Yale President’s Council on International Activities, the Council of the Americas, and the Council on Foreign Relations.
He is a graduate of Yale College and Stanford Law School.