First published 2020
Joan Anderson Growe transforms Minnesota into a national model for voter participation during her remarkable political career. Growing up in a family that treated every election as sacred duty, she launches an unprecedented grassroots feminist campaign that carries her to the state legislature in 1972. Two years later, she wins election as Minnesota's secretary of state, becoming the chief architect of the state's voting system. From her office, Growe battles to implement Election Day registration, introduces cutting-edge technology to streamline voting, and champions motor voter programs that make registration effortless. Her memoir reveals the behind-the-scenes negotiations with county officials, the technical challenges of modernizing elections, and her parallel mission to recruit women candidates across the state. Growe writes with humor and candor about the personal costs and political victories that shaped both her life and Minnesota's democratic culture. Her story captures the intersection of feminism and electoral reform during a pivotal era in American politics.
Genres: feminism, political-science, politics, biography-memoir, activism, american-history
Vibes: candid, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-journey, political-career
Setting: Minnesota
Period: 1970s, 1980s
224 pages · Paperback · Minnesota Historical Society Press