Gloria Wilinski Schaffer (born October 3, 1930) is an American politician who served as

Secretary of the State of Connecticut The secretary of the State of Connecticut is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Connecticut. (The definite article is part of the legal job title.) It is an elected position in the state government and has a term length of four ...

from 1971 to 1978. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

from

New London New London may refer to: Places United States *New London, Alabama *New London, Connecticut *New London, Indiana *New London, Iowa *New London, Maryland *New London, Minnesota *New London, Missouri *New London, New Hampshire, a New England town ** ...

, she served in the

Connecticut State Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Sen ...

from 1959 to 1971. She attended

The Williams School The Williams School is a private co-educational secondary school in New London, Connecticut, that offers classes from 6th grade to 12th grade. It was founded as the Williams Memorial Institute (WMI) by Harriet Peck Williams in 1891, following the ...

and Sarah Lawrence College and ran for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

in 1976.

Life and career

Schaffer won election to the

from the 14th Senate District in 1958, serving six terms (1959–1971). She chaired the state senate's education committee. She won election as Secretary of the State of Connecticut in 1970 and served two terms from 1971 to 1978. In 1976 she ran for U.S. Senator in Connecticut but lost by a wide margin to Republican incumbent

Lowell Weicker Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. (; born May 16, 1931) is an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the 85th Governor of Connecticut. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president in 1980. He was ...

. She was the only woman to win a major party nomination for the US Senate in 1976. In 1978, Schaffer was appointed a member of the US Civil Aeronautics Board by President Jimmy Carter. In 1985, she was appointed a member of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission by Governor William A. O'Neill, and then was appointed commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Affairs by Governor

in 1991. As of 2018, Schaffer was serving as a Fellow of

Branford College Branford College is one of the 14 residential colleges at Yale University. Founding Branford College was founded in 1933 by partitioning the Memorial Quadrangle (built in 1917-21) into two parts: Saybrook and Branford. According to Robert Frost ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Schaffer, Gloria Living people 1930 births Politicians from New London, Connecticut Sarah Lawrence College alumni Democratic Party Connecticut state senators Secretaries of the State of Connecticut Jewish American people in Connecticut politics Jewish women politicians 21st-century American Jews