David Mundell was born in Dumfries, Scotland and was educated at the University of Edinburgh. In 1999 and 2003, he was elected as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the South of Scotland region however resigned as an MSP following the 2005 General Election when he was elected as an MP. From December 2005 to the 2010 General Election, he was the Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland. After the 2010 election, a Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition was formed and because the Liberal Democrats have more Scottish MP's than the Conservatives, a Liberal Democrat was given the post of Scottish secretary.