Secretary of State Trey Grayson was recently appointed Vice-Chairman of the National Association of Secretaries of State’s (NASS) standing committee on voter participation by NASS president Hon. Rebecca Vigil-Giron (D-NM).  In his capacity, he will work with the New Millennium Young Voter’s Project that NASS created to increase young people’s participation in the democratic process.

“I look forward to serving the country in this position and am honored by my appointment,” stated Grayson.  “It is an exciting opportunity to work with different Secretaries of State and voter outreach organizations across the country in order to increase voter participation.”

Grayson went on to say that this appointment ties in directly with his initiative to increase civic engagement of the young citizens of the Commonwealth.  Secretary Grayson will join the Administrative Office of the Courts, the Department of Education, and Northern Kentucky University (NKU) in hosting the Summit on Civic Literacy on October 5, 2004 at the NKU METS Center in Erlanger, Kentucky.

“I have worked diligently to see that we increase the participation of young people in our democratic process.  This new leadership role will allow me to direct more efforts on this important initiative,” Grayson said.

Grayson was also appointed to serve on the standing committees on elections and business services, as well as a subcommittee on presidential primaries.

In addition to his appointment to several NASS committees, Secretary Grayson was also named to the advisory committee of Just Democracy, Inc., a non-partisan, non-profit organization established to support fair and honest voting by utilizing the skills and resources of law students on Election Day.  Secretary Grayson became the first Secretary of State in the country to serve on the advisory committee.

Secretary Grayson, at 32 years old, is the youngest Secretary of State in the country and was only 31 when he assumed office.  He has been recognized by the Kentucky Press Association and the Shakertown Roundtable as one of 41 “Kentucky Leaders for a New Century.”  In June, he was one of 40 state leaders from across the country selected to participate in the prestigious Toll Fellowship Program sponsored by The Council of State Governments.  He was also recently named a “Rising Star” in the Republican Party by United Leaders.