JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s new state auditor is pledging to protect taxpayers’ money.

Shad White took his oath of office Tuesday and will fill the rest of a four-year term that ends in January 2020. Gov. Phil Bryant named him to succeed fellow Republican Stacey Pickering, who had been auditor since January 2008.

Pickering stepped down to become director of the Mississippi Veterans Affairs Board.

The 32-year-old White is an attorney and has never held elected office. He has also been involved in Republican politics for years, including running Bryant’s re-election campaign in 2015.

After graduating from the University of Mississippi, White was a Rhodes scholar. He later earned a law degree from Harvard. He grew up in Jones County and lives in Rankin County.