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From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues

Rell, M. Jodi (b. 1946)

Connecticut’s second woman governor, Republican M. Jodi Rell, took office on July 1, 2004 and served until 2011. At the time she became governor, she was lieutenant governor of Connecticut and succeeded incumbent Governor John Rowland, who resigned in the midst of a corruption investigation. Rowland was later imprisoned. Rell asserted that she was unaware of the corruption. Her legacy includes bringing calm to a tumultuous political landscape.

Other achievements include saving the U.S. Navy base in Groton, Connecticut, from closure, and enacting some of the toughest campaign reforms in the nation and transportation improvements.

Governor Rell began her political career in 1984, the year she won a seat in the Connecticut House of Representatives, serving until 1994. That year, John Rowland ran for governor and chose Rell to be his running mate. The ticket won in 1994, 1998, and 2002.

After taking office as governor, Rell identified herself as a reformer and addressed the corruption that had resulted in her predecessor’s resignation. She appointed a special council for ethics compliance, signed a law restructuring the state ethics commission, and established a state contracting standards board. She also proposed legislation for campaign finance reforms.

Governor Rell signed a law legalizing same-sex unions, making Connecticut the first state in the nation to do so without being required by a court. She proposed using part of the state’s budget surplus to pay for stem cell research.

Rell retired from office.

See also: Governors, Women

References: Hartford Courant, December 26, 2010, The New York Times, October 3, 2004; October 6, 2005; October 15, 2005; Stempel, “Rell Proposes Stem Cell Funding,” Fairfield County Business Journal, January 10, 2005: 8.

Citation Types

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Format
MLA 9th
"Rell, M. Jodi (b. 1946)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, edited by Suzanne O’Dea, Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0805.
APA 7th
Rell, M. Jodi (b. 1946). From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, In S. O’Dea (Ed.), Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0805.
CMOS 17th
"Rell, M. Jodi (b. 1946)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, Edited by Suzanne O’Dea. Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0805.