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Eu (March Fong)
M1652
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: March Fong Eu papers
Creator:
Eu, March Fong
Identifier/Call Number: M1652
Identifier/Call Number: 2133
Physical Description:
43 Linear Feet
(56 manuscript storage boxes, 15 records storage boxes, and 1 flat box)
Physical Description:
3.56 gigabyte(s)
(born-digital content)
Date (inclusive): 1935-2009
Abstract: March Fong Eu was an Asian-American politician who served as California's Secretary of State for twenty years. The materials
include political, professional and personal materials as well as biographical information.
The March Fong Eu papers documents the professional and political activities of March Fong Eu. The collection is approximately
43 linear feet. The collection consists of correspondence, campaign materials, fundraising, campaign finance reports, financial
records, flyers, brochures, pamphlets, invitations, schedules, newspaper clippings, memorandums, textbooks, research materials,
information about national and international trips, biographical information, ephemera, plaques, and awards. The materials
predominantly cover her political campaigns (including fundraising and campaigning for other, predominantly Democratic, candidates),
her time in the California Assembly and as California Secretary of State, and her appointment as Ambassador to the Federated
States of Micronesia. The materials include her biographer's research materials and notes as well as manuscript drafts. There
are also subject files, information about March Fong Eu's artwork, personal correspondence, and some personal records. There
is a small amount of papers documenting her early career as a dental hygienist and serving on the Alameda County Board of
Education.
The papers are organized into two accession: the first accession, 2008-329, came directly from March Fong Eu, and includes
photographs, artwork, memorabilia, ephemera, and media. The second accession, 2010-016, came indirectly from her biographer,
Tim Vandehey, who had been using the bulk of the papers.
March Fong Eu was a long-serving politician from California. She served as California's Secretary of State for nearly twenty
years, was a strong advocate for voting rights and broke a number of barriers including being the first Asian-American woman
elected to a state legislature, the first woman elected as California Secretary of State, and the first Asian-American elected
to a state constitutional office.
March Fong Eu was born March Kong on March 29, 1922, in Oakdale, California, in the San Joaquin Valley near Modesto. She was
a third-generation Californian and was the youngest of five children. Her parents, Hoy Yuen Kong and Shee Shuey Jue, operated
a laundry in Oakdale. The family later movied to San Francisco and then to Richmond. Eu graduated from high school in Richmond
and was a top student but her aspirations of becoming a teacher or scientist were thwarted because of the lack of opportunities
to Chinese-Americans and women. She instead attended the University of California at Berkeley, earning her bachelor's degree
in 1943 and became a dental hygienist. She became interested in politics after serving as the President of the American Dental
Hygienists Association, where she advocated for more equal treatment of dental hygienists in the predominantly male dentist
profession. She also earned a master of education degree from Mills College in 1947 and a doctorate in education from Stanford
in 1954.
March Fong Eu was elected to serve on the Alameda County Board of Education from 1954-1964 and served as an educational consultant
to a number of school districts. While serving on the Alameda County Board of Education she helped write dental health handbooks
for Alameda County Public Schools. In 1966 she was elected to the California State Assembly 15th District, serving parts of
Oakland and Castro Valley. She was elected as an Assembly Member four times and served from 1966 until 1974. When she was
first elected she was one of only three women Assembly Members, including fellow freshman Yvonne Brathwaite Burke. As an Assembly
Member March Fong Eu was focused on gender equality, health care, family planning, consumer protections, and the environment.
During her time in the Assembly she was most well-known for her campaign against pay toilets, which she said discriminated
against women. To bring attention to this issue she brought a toilet wrapped in chains to the steps of the Capitol and smashed
it with a sledgehammer. She later quipped that a vote on a law banning public pay toilets was 'along potty lines'. During
her time in the Assembly she was Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Employment and Public Employees and Chairman of the
Select Committee on Agriculture, Food and Nutrition. She was also a member of the Health Committee, a member of the Committee
on Elections and Reapportionment and a member of the Select Committees on Health Manpower and Medical Malpractice.
In 1974 she campaigned and won the race for California's Secretary of State. As Secretary of State she advocated for greater
transparency, increased oversight of notaries public, streamlined corporations filing, and eased voter access by allowing
voter registration by mail as well as no-excuse absentee voting. She used the office of the Secretary of State to promote
California agriculture and international trade. She also strongly pushed for the creation of a museum as a part of the California
State Archives. She won five Secretary of State elections. Eu campaigned for U.S. Senator but dropped out partly due to low
fundraising and the refusal of her husband, Henry Eu, to release the family's financial information that was required of candidates.
In 1994 she resigned from the Secretary of State office after being appointed Ambassador to the Federated States of Micronesia
by President Bill Clinton.
Eu served as Ambassador until 1996 when she resigned to be more involved in the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign. Starting
during the 1996 presidential campaign she organized a number of speeches and events to counteract the increased xenophobia
towards Chinese and Chinese--Americans. In 1998 she campaigned for her son Matt Fong, who was the Republican candidate for
Senator running as a moderate. Following the 2000 presidential election debacle in Florida, Eu decided to run again for Secretary
of State, losing in the Democratic primary to eventual winner Kevin Shelley. In 2003 she filed paperwork for the Gubernatorial
Recall election but withdrew soon after.
March Fong Eu married Chester Fong in 1941. They divorced in 1970 and in 1973 she married Henry Eu, a wealthy businessman
from Singapore and Hong Kong. March Fong Eu had two children with Chester Fong: Suyin Stein and Matthew Kipling 'Kip' Fong.
In 1986 she was brutally attacked in her Los Angeles area home which led her to launch an initiative campaign called Dimes
Against Crimes, a ballot initiative which would have created a tax on alcohol to support law enforcement.
Eu was also a calligraphy artist.
Throughout her long career she served on a number of committees and was the recipient of many local, state, and national awards.
She used her positions to speak out against discrimination against women, Asian-Americans, and other marginalized communities.
March Fong Eu was very involved in Democratic politics.
March Fong Eu died on December 21, 2017, after a fall at her home, in Irvine, California.
[identification of item], March Fong Eu papers (M1652). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford
Libraries, Stanford, California.
Open for research. Note that material must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use. Audiovisual & born-digital
materials are not available in original format, and must be reformatted to a digital use copy.
While Special Collections is the owner of the physical items, permission to examine collection materials is not an authorization
to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. Any transmission or reproduction
beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the owners of rights, heir(s) or assigns.
M1865 The March Fong Eu story; the authorized biography of an unauthorized woman / Tim Vandehey : typescript final draft,
2011.
ND1049 .E92 A4 1991 Yujiang Yuegui shu hua ji = Painting and calligraphy of March Fong Eu.
The California State Archives also holds multiple collections related to March Fong Eu's time in the California State Assembly
and her long career as Secretary of State.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
California -- Politics and government
Asian Americans -- California.
Political campaigns -- United States -- History
Politicians
Calligraphy.
California -- History -- Sources.
California. Secretary of State