Ella Grasso: Connecticut's Pioneering Governor

By Jon E. Purmont

Book Overview

Intimate portrait of Connecticut's first female governor

When Ella Tambussi Grasso ran for governor of Connecticut in 1974, she had not lost an election since she was first voted into the state's General Assembly in 1952. The people of Connecticut chose her as the nation's first woman to be elected governor in her own right--the capstone of a long and successful career dedicated to public service, effective government, and the democratic process. During her tenure as governor, Grasso's leadership was tested in the face of fiscal problems, state layoffs, and budget shortfalls. The daughter of Italian immigrants, she endeared herself to her constituents during the great Blizzard of 1978, when she stayed at the State Armory around the clock to direct emergency operations and make frequent television appearances. Author Jon E. Purmont, who served as Grasso's executive assistant when she was governor, draws on his diary from that time, research in Grasso's archives, and interviews with Grasso's family and friends to give us a rich and intimate portrait of this political pioneer.

A Driftless Connecticut Series Book, funded by the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0819573434
• ISBN13: 9780819573438
• Release Date: November 2012
• Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up