RICHMOND, VA – ?Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced the appointment of Brig. Gen. James W. Ring to serve as the 29th Adjutant General of Virginia. Ring's appointment as the leader of the Virginia National Guard and Virginia Defense Force is effective June 3, 2023. 

“I am pleased to appoint Brig. Gen. James W. Ring as the new Adjutant General of Virginia to succeed Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams," said Governor Glenn Youngkin. "Brig. Gen. Ring is a proven leader who has served in key command and staff positions at the state and national level as well as in combat, and I am confident in his abilities to lead the Virginia National Guard and Virginia Defense Force. I’m grateful for the leadership of Maj. Gen. Williams who is retiring after nearly 40 years of dedicated service to the nation and to the commonwealth. We wish him the best as he moves on to his next chapter.” 

“Maj. Gen Williams has been a superb leader for the Virginia National Guard and has positively influenced its future. I’m excited to work with Brig. Gen Ring as he takes the helm as the new the Adjutant General, he brings tremendous talent,” said Craig Crenshaw, Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs.

Ring currently serves as the Virginia National Guard's director of the joint staff, a position he has held since May 2018. 

“I am incredibly honored and humbled by Governor Youngkin selecting me to lead the more than 9,000 Virginia National Guard Soldiers and Airmen and members of the Virginia Defense Force," Ring said. "I look forward to working with our leaders to build on the high levels of readiness reached under Maj. Gen. Williams' leadership.” 

Williams will retire July 1, 2023, and a transfer of authority ceremony will be scheduled for early June. 

"Being assigned as the 28th Adjutant General of Virginia has been a singular honor and privilege to serve the men and women of the Virginia National Guard and Virginia Defense Force over the last nine years," Williams said. "I could not be prouder of these men and women who have displayed such dedication and professionalism. No matter what the challenge we faced, they always accomplished the mission in spectacular fashion." 

The Adjutant General of Virginia serves as the agency head for the Virginia Department of Military Affairs, the state agency providing leadership and administrative support to the Virginia Army National Guard, Virginia Air National Guard and Virginia Defense Force. The Virginia National Guard is a unique dual-status force with a federal mission to provide a combat reserve for the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force to fight our nation's wars and a state mission to provide a response force that answers the call of the Governor to defend the commonwealth, and the Virginia Defense Force is authorized by Section 44-54.4 of the Code of Virginia as the all-volunteer reserve of the Virginia National Guard.