People – Southeast
Republican Ralph Hudgens was elected to a second term as Georgia’s insurance and safety fire commissioner in the Nov. 4 midterm election.
“Serving as Georgia’s Insurance Commissioner has been a tremendous privilege, and I am grateful for the opportunity to fulfill another term,” Hudgens said in a statement.
“In my time in office, I have focused on protecting consumers while making sure that Georgia remains a competitive place to do the business of insurance. Today a majority of voters in this State placed their trust in me to serve another term. I will work hard over the next four years to earn that trust,” said Hudgens.
Hudgens received 1,378,560 votes, or 55 percent of the total votes cast, beating Democrat Elizabeth Johnson who received 1,044,812 votes, or 42 percent of the total votes, and Libertarian Edward Metz who got 86,205 votes or 3 percent of the overall votes.
Hudgens was first elected as Georgia’s insurance and safety fire commissioner in November 2010 and assumed the office in January 2011.
His duties as insurance commissioner include regulating approximately 1,600 insurance companies, licensing 137,000 agents, and regulating 1,000 industrial loan offices.
As safety fire commissioner, Hudgens appoints the state fire marshal, oversees the state arson unit, regulates explosive and hazardous materials, and is responsible for the inspection of public buildings for compliance with the state fire code.
Baldwin Krystyn Sherman Partners (BKS-Partners) in Tampa, Florida, has appointed Trevor Baldwin to partner. He joins Lowry Baldwin, Laura Sherman and Elizabeth Krystyn as partners at the private independent insurance agency.
Baldwin is responsible for the firm’s business analytics and acquisition strategy as well as financial reporting. As managing director of the commercial risk management group and financial institution practice group, he leads the commercial business operations and business development strategies.
He started with the firm as an intern. Within five years, he became chief operating officer of the holding company, launched Medicare Insurance Partners, and helped develop The Villages Insurance Partners.
The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) elected new officers to its board of governors during its annual meeting last month in Scottsdale.
Terrence W. Cavanaugh, president and CEO of Erie Insurance Group, was elected as PCI’s chair; Jim Wallace, chairman, president and CEO of GuideOne Insurance, was elected first vice chair; and John Barbagallo, president, Commercial Lines Group of Progressive Insurance Group, was elected second vice chair.
Cavanaugh joined Erie in 2008 after a 33-year career with the Chubb Group. He began his insurance career as an underwriter in 1975. In addition to PCI, he is on the board of the American Institute for CPCU and Insurance Institute of America.
Wallace joined GuideOne Insurance in 2001. Previously, he was the president and CEO of National Travelers Life Co. and, prior to that, partner in charge of insurance services for the eastern half of the U.S. for Ernst & Young.
Barbagallo joined Progressive in 1983 as a claims adjuster. His career at Progressive spans 28 years and includes management positions in claims, sales, operations, and marketing.
PCI is composed of more than 1,000 member companies that write $195 billion in annual premium, or 39 percent of the nation’s property/casualty insurance.
Dan Francis, co-founder and executive chairman of San Francisco-based Edgewood Partners Insurance Center, left the firm effective Nov. 1, according to EPIC.
“In leaving EPIC, I’ve decided to begin a new journey outside of insurance that will afford me the opportunity to further ‘give back’ and focus on some personal interests/worthy causes that have meant a lot to me over the years,” Francis said in a message shared with his EPIC colleagues.
Under Francis, EPIC grew from 63 employees in two California offices to more than 620 team members in 18 locations across the country.
EPIC’s strategic partners include private equity firms The Carlyle Group and Stone Point Capital.
Neenah, Wis.-based Jewelers Mutual Insurance Co. announced that Scott Murphy has been selected as successor to President and CEO Darwin Copeman, who will be retiring in 2015. Copeman has been president and CEO of Jewelers Mutual since 2009.
Murphy formerly served as an executive partner and principal in the insurance industry consulting group Triad Analytic Solutions, which offers product, pricing/underwriting and distribution solutions for numerous insurance-related businesses across multiple lines of business. His career in insurance includes roles as chief operating officer at GMAC Insurance, as well as executive or management positions within the Great American family of insurance carriers, Infinity Insurance and Windsor Insurance Group.
Murphy will begin his new role as president and CEO of Jewelers Mutual in January.