March Kong Fong Eu ( Kong; March 29, 1922 – December 21, 2017) was an American politician. She was a member of the California State Assembly and went on to serve as Secretary of State of California. Early life and education Eu was born March Kong on March 29, 1922 in Oakdale, California in the San Joaquin Valley, where her Chinese immigrant parents Yuen Kong and Shiu Shee ran a hand-wash laundry. Her grandparents immigrated to the U.S. from Huaxian County (now Huadu District) in the South China province of Guangdong. The family later moved to Richmond, California. Eu earned a Bachelor of Science in dentistry from the University of California, Berkeley in 1943 and a Master of Arts from Mills College. She earned an Ed.D. from the Stanford Graduate School of Education in 1954. Career She became a dental hygienist and served a term as president of the American Dental Hygienist Association. In the 1950s she served on the Alameda County School Board. California Assembly In 1966 Eu was elected as a Democrat to the California State Assembly from the 15th District, representing Oakland and Castro Valley. She served four terms. She is perhaps best known for her successful campaign to ban pay toilets, arguing that they discriminated against women since urinals were free. California Secretary of State Eu was elected Secretary of State of California in 1974, becoming the first Asian American woman ever elected to a state constitutional office in the United States. She remained the only woman to serve as California Secretary of State until 2006, when voters elected Debra Bowen. Eu was elected Secretary of State five times. In 1978 she won every county in the state, even heavily Republican Orange County, making her one of only five Democrats to win the county in a statewide race in the last half century. She resigned in 1994 when President Bill Clinton nominated her for an ambassadorship. Innovations she introduced during her 20 years as Secretary of State included voter registration by mail; providing absentee ballots to anyone who requested them; posting results on the Internet; and including candidate statements in ballot pamphlets. In 1976, she became the first woman to serve as Governor of California, serving as acting governor while Governor Jerry Brown was out of the state. Other political activities In 1987 Eu was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate, running