# 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 years.
The current secretary of the state is Stephanie Thomas, a Democrat who has held the office since January 2023 after defeating Republican opponent Dominic Rapini in the 2022 general election.
The Secretary of the State's Office is composed of two divisions:
* The Legislation and Elections Administration Division, which administers elections and ensures compliance with state and federal election laws. This division is also responsible for maintaining governmental records, administering the Seal of Connecticut, and licensing notaries public.
* The Commercial Recording Division, which charters corporations and other business entities, registers trademarks, service marks, and liens under the Uniform Commercial Code, and issues apostilles.

## List of secretaries of state of Connecticut
### Before statehood

| Name | Town | Term of service | Years of service |
| Edward Hopkins | Hartford | 1639–1641 | 2 yrs. |
| Thomas Welles | Hartford | 1641–1648 | 7 yrs. |
| John Cullick | Hartford, O | 1648–1658 | 10 yrs. |
| Daniel Clark | Windsor, O | 1658–1664, 1665–1667 | 8 yrs. |
| John Allyn | Hartford, O | 1664–1665, 1667–1696 | 30 yrs. |
| Eleazer Kimberly | Glastonbury, O | 1696–1709 | 13 yrs. |
| William Whiting | Hartford, O | 1709 | 3 mo. |
| Caleb Stanly | Hartford, O | 1709–1712 | 3 yrs. |
| Richard Lord | Hartford, O | 1712 | 17 d. |
| Hezekiah Wyllys | Hartford, O | 1712–1735 | 23 yrs. |
| George Wyllys | Hartford, O | 1735–1796 | 61 yrs. |

### Since statehood

Connecticut ratified the United States Constitution and gained statehood in 1788.
| Name | Town | Political party | Term of service |
| George Wyllys | Hartford | | 1788–1796 |
| Samuel Wyllys | Hartford | | 1796–1810 |
| Thomas Day | Hartford | | 1810–1835 |
| Royal Ralph Hinman | Southbury | | 1835–1842 |
| Noah A. Phelps | Hartford | | 1842–1844 |
| Daniel P. Tyler | Pomfret | | 1844–1846 |
| Charles W. Bradley | Hartford | | 1846–1847 |
| John B. Robertson | New Haven | | 1847–1849 |
| Roger H. Mills | N. Hartford | Whig | 1849–1850 |
| Hiram Weed | Danbury | Democratic | 1850 |
| John P. C. Mather | New London | Democratic | 1850–1854 |
| Oliver H. Perry | Fairfield | Whig | 1854–1855 |
| Nehemiah D. Sperry | New Haven | American | 1855–1857 |
| Orville H. Platt | Meriden | American, Republican | 1857–1858 |
| John Boyd | Winchester | Republican | 1858–1861 |
| James Hammond Trumbull | Hartford | Republican | 1861–1866 |
| Leverett E. Pease | Somers | Union | 1866–1869 |
| Hiram Appleman | Groton | Republican | 1869–1870 |
| Thomas M. Waller | New London | Democratic | 1870–1871 |
| Hiram Appleman | Groton | Republican | 1871–1873 |
| D. W. Edgecomb | Fairfield | Republican | 1873 |
| Marvin H. Sanger | Canterbury | Democratic | 1873–1877 |
| Dwight Morris | Bridgeport | Democratic | 1877-–1879 |
| David Torrance | Derby | Republican | 1879–1881 |
| Charles E. Searls | Thompson | Republican | 1881–1883 |
| D. Ward Northrop | Middletown | Democratic | 1883–1885 |
| Charles A. Russell | Killingly | Republican | 1885–1887 |
| Leverett M. Hubbard | Wallingford | Republican | 1887–1889 |
| R. Jay Walsh | Greenwich | Republican | 1889–1893 |
| John J. Phelan | Bridgeport | Democratic | 1893–1895 |
| William C. Mowry | Norwich | Republican | 1895–1897 |
| Charles Phelps | Rockville | Republican | 1897–1899 |
| Huber Clark | Willimantic | Republican | 1899–1901 |
| Charles G. R. Vinal | Middletown | Republican | 1901–1905 |
| Theodore Bodenwein | New London | Republican | 1905–1909 |
| Matthew H. Rogers | Bridgeport | Republican | 1909–1913 |
| Albert Phillips | Stamford | Democratic | 1913–1915 |
| Charles D. Burnes | Greenwich | Republican | 1915–1917 |
| Frederick L. Perry | New Haven | Republican | 1917–1921 |
| Donald J. Warner | Salisbury | Republican | 1921–1923 |
| Francis A. Pallotti | Hartford | Republican | 1923–1929 |
| William L. Higgins | Coventry | Republican | 1929–1933 |
| John A. Danaher | Hartford | Republican | 1933–1935 |
| C. John Satti | New London | Democratic | 1935–1939 |
| Sara B. Crawford | Westport | Republican | 1939–1941 |
| Chase G. Woodhouse | New London | Democratic | 1941–1943 |
| Frances B. Redick | Newington | Republican | 1943–1945 |
| Charles J. Prestia | New Britain | Democratic | 1945–1947 |
| Frances B. Redick | Newington | Republican | 1947–1949 |
| Winifred McDonald | Waterbury | Democratic | 1949–1951 |
| Alice K. Leopold | Weston | Republican | 1951–1953 |
| Charles B. Keats | Bridgeport | Republican | 1953–1955 |
| Mildred P. Allen | Hartford | Republican | 1955–1959 |
| Ella Grasso | Windsor Locks | Democratic | 1959–1971 |
| Gloria Schaffer | Woodbridge | Democratic | 1971–1978 |
| Henry S. Cohn | West Hartford | Democratic | 1978–1979 |
| Barbara B. Kennelly | Hartford | Democratic | 1979–1982 |
| Maura L. Melley | Wethersfield | Democratic | 1982–1983 |
| Julia Tashjian | Windsor | Democratic | 1983–1991 |
| Pauline R. Kezer | Plainville | Republican | 1991–1995 |
| Miles S. Rapoport | West Hartford | Democratic | 1995–1999 |
| Susan Bysiewicz | Middletown | Democratic | 1999–2011 |
| Denise Merrill | Mansfield | Democratic | 2011–2022 |
| Mark Kohler | North Haven | Democratic | 2022–2023 |
| Stephanie Thomas | Norwalk | Democratic | 2023–present |