Former 5th District Rep. Tom Perriello has been named as a special envoy to Sudan.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken made the announcement Monday.
Devex, a news site devoted to global development issues, reports that the appointment follows “months of demands by Democratic and Republican lawmakers to hire a senior troubleshooter to help prevent one of Africa’s largest countries from spiraling deeper into civil war, ethnic cleansing, and one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.”
Devex went on to report: “The appointment aims to demonstrate the U.S. commitment to ending a conflict that has resulted in the deaths of more than 12,000 Sudanese and stymied international efforts to help Khartoum develop its economy. The current war has displaced nearly 8 million people and led to a resumption of mass killings in Darfur, the site of genocide in the early aughts. It has also upended one of the U.S.’s most important policy objectives in sub-Saharan Africa, steering a largely hostile Islamic autocracy accused of genocide into a flourishing democracy.”
Perriello, a Democrat from Albemarle County, was elected to the U.S. House in 2008, narrowly defeating Virgil Goode, the Republican incumbent, by a margin of 50.1% to 49.9%. He lost his reelection bid in 2010 to Robert Hurt and also lost the 2017 Democratic gubernatorial primary to Ralph Northam.
Perriello’s background before Congress was in diplomacy, with a speciality in African affairs, and that’s where he’s worked since leaving Congress. In 2015, then-President Barack Obama named Perriello as special envoy to the Great Lakes region of Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In that role, Perriello helped negotiate the deal that led to President Joseph Kabila leaving office after originally vowing to stay in office beyond his term. The Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington nonprofit, said that Perriello had served “with distinction” in that role but is not well-connected to career diplomats in the State Department that he’ll need to support his diplomacy.
“Fortunately for Perriello, he comes to the job with an outsider’s fresh eyes, an activist’s drive for measurable impact, and a politician’s feel for dealmaking,” the center said in a report that anticipated his appointment. “Moreover, he arrives with an ace in the hole: bipartisan support from an engaged Congress that has been clamoring for a more active and engaged U.S. role in Sudan since the fighting there broke out.”
In December, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both D-Virginia, sent President Joe Biden a letter urging a speedy appointment of a special envoy to Sudan. On Monday, they both hailed the decision to name Perriello to the post.
“I know that Tom’s diplomatic experience will better our efforts in the region to deliver immediate humanitarian aid and prioritize the safety of civilians who have been displaced by incessant violence,” Warner said in a statement.
“The rapidly worsening crisis in Sudan urgently necessitates the delivery of humanitarian assistance and meaningful steps to protect civilians,” Kaine said in a statement. “Tom has the experience and skills needed to lead our strong diplomatic efforts in Sudan. Virginia is home to a large Sudanese diaspora, and I expect he will bring these perspectives with him in this new role.”