Secretary Of The State Emphasizes Importance Of Voting To Students

By Larissa Lytwyn

Susan Bysiewicz, Connecticut’s 72nd Secretary of the State, recently visited third graders at Middle Gate and Hawley elementary schools in conjunction with their current study of American civics.

At the beginning of her visit to Middle Gate, however, Ms Byzeiwicz’s presentation was cut short by a fire alarm, later characterized by district maintenance supervisor Dom Posca as an internal “alarm malfunction.”

 “Who are your local representatives at the state legislature?” Ms Bysiewicz asked.

Students identified their local representatives, Reps Julia Wasserman, DebraLee Hovey, and Senator John McKinney.

After touching briefly on the governmental process, the Secretary of State asked students where they could find out information on the candidates.

A flurry of hands launched the young audience in motion.

“The newspaper!” one declared.

“Websites!” exclaimed another.

“Those are both excellent sources,” commended Ms Bysiewicz.

She emphasized the importance of voting.

“Voting is a right that our ancestors died for,” she said. “It is a right that, today, we all often take for granted. When can you all legally vote?”

A student instantly answered correctly, age 18.

Ms Bysiewicz asked the students if they planned to vote when they turned 18.

Several hands immediately rose.

Ms Bysiewicz smiled. “I am not going to be satisfied until every one of you raises your hand,” she said, waiting until every hand was up. “Voting is a key way to make change in our society.”

Encouraging state residents to vote, she continued, is one of the chief responsibilities of her job. She then shared some of her personal background.

“I have sons in third and fifth grade, and a daughter in seventh,” she said. “My daughter loves track and field.”

One student asked if the family had a dog.

Ms Bysiewicz answered honestly: “We did, but when it was a puppy it got run over by a car.”

This was met with a flood of horrified gasps, then groans.

“We’d like to get another dog someday,” she added.

She briefly discussed the jobs she held prior to becoming Secretary of State, including work in law, an insurance agency, and as a representative of the state legislature.

“What job did you like most?” one student asked.

“The job I have now,” Ms Bysiewicz replied, adding that her favorite part is “talking to young people.”

“You all remind me of my own children,” she said, grinning.

As Secretary of State, a position she has held since 1999 (she was reelected in 2002), Ms Bysiewicz, a Democrat, serves as the state’s chief business registrar.

During her tenure, she has aimed to make her agency more accessible to the public by including free online access to business filings on the more than 120,000 companies registered in the state, according to her state website.

She also orchestrated the posting of all election campaign finance reports on the Internet.

Another “priority,” her website states, has been protecting individual privacy and advocating for consumer rights.

“I found her presentation very informative,” said third grader Anna Grillo. “Especially the importance of voting. We just learned [in class] how women couldn’t vote [until 1920]. It’s important.”