The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission has named Zack Pruitt as its vice president of public policy and general counsel for the organization. Pruitt will officially begin his new role Sept. 14.
Pruitt comes to the ERLC from Alliance Defending Freedom, where he served as senior counsel and director of U.S. government relations. In this role, he promoted ADF’s policy and legislative work at the national level on behalf of the broader ADF public policy team. Pruitt also served as deputy executive director and national director of government relations of ADF’s sister organization, ADF Action, where he helped oversee the state government relations team and represented ADF Action to government officials and coalition leaders.
Finding the right person
ERLC President Evan Lenow noted, “From the beginning of my tenure at the ERLC, I have wanted to prioritize the connection between our work to resource Southern Baptist churches to address the ethical questions in their communities and our public policy advocacy regarding issues that Southern Baptists care deeply about. … As a lifelong Southern Baptist, Zack understands the mission of our churches. With more than a decade in the policy world, he has relationships and a history of successful work with lawmakers and leaders in government. Now the ERLC gets to benefit from this unique combination of skills and relationships to advance the work of the Convention in public policy.”
Background
Prior to joining ADF, Pruitt served as director of public policy for the Family Action Council of Tennessee. Before that, he was a Charles Koch Institute research fellow at the Acton Institute in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and managed a state Senate campaign in Missouri.
Pruitt grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he attended Woodland Park Baptist Church under Wayne Barber. He currently serves in his Southern Baptist church in the greater D.C. area. He earned his Juris Doctor with a certificate in international and comparative law from St. Louis University School of Law. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He is a member of the state bar in Tennessee and the District of Columbia and is also admitted to practice in the U.S. Supreme Court.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Elizabeth Bristow and originally released by the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
