(1919–81), U.S. public official. Born on May 10, 1919, in Windsor Locks, Conn., Ella T. Grasso became a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives in 1953 and secretary of state for Connecticut in 1958. She served in the latter office until 1970 when she was elected as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives. In 1974 she was elected governor of Connecticut. She was reelected in 1979 but resigned in 1980 because of illness.