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01/22/2024 10:00 AMState Representative Christine Palm (D, District 36), who represents Essex, Chester, Deep River, and Haddam, has announced she will not seek a fourth term. She came into office in 2019, and her final term will end on Jan. 8, 2025.
“It is time,” Palm said. “I want to go out on a high note and on my own terms. I love the job with all my heart, but I also want to balance my life.”
Colleagues, according to Palm, have tried to talk her out of her decision, but she is firm.
“I don’t want to make age an issue, but they are younger,” she said, noting the number of times she has driven home from Hartford after a 14-hour legislature session at 3 a.m. Palm is 68 years old.
Leaving the legislature, however, does not mean leaving involvement with state government.
“I want to continue to fight in new ways,” Palm said.
She noted there is a significant disconnect between what the state legislature does and what citizens know about the body.
Palm has made a PowerPoint presentation that she calls State Government 101 that she plans to present to schools and community groups to make them aware of how state government works and how they can make it work for them. She created the PowerPoint a year ago when she realized how little information there was on the topic.
“I truly believe government can be a force for good, and I want to help demystify it, to amplify citizens’ voices to make sure public policy is, truly, the public’s policy,” she said.
She intends to rely on her experience not just as a legislator but as an educator, journalist, and writer to bring her message to the public.
During her time in the legislature, Palm has sponsored a number of significant bills on environmental issues. She is vice-chair of the Legislature’s Environment Committee and, in 2023, was named Legislator of the Year by the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters.
One of her successful bills mandates the teaching of climate change in all Connecticut schools. Another established the Office of Invasive Aquatic Species to fight the rapid spread of invasive plants like hydrilla that threaten to choke sections of Connecticut waterways.
Other areas where Palm has made significant contributions include reproductive rights, gun safety, the teaching of civic and media literacy in schools, and the banning of toxic PFAS chemicals in firefighting.
In addition, Palm has been able to direct state funds to projects within her district, among them a new roof on the Deep River Elementary School, more than $380,000 in state bond funds for repair and restoration of the Brainerd Memorial Library in Haddam, and more than $500,00 for park creation and improvement in Haddam and Higganum.
Though her term does not end for another 11 months, Palm wanted to make her announcement now to give potential candidates time to organize campaigns.
“If I don’t announce now, viable people might not make a decision to run,” she said. “I do not want this to be a cat-and-mouse game with people’s trust. I want people to know I have made up my mind.
It is the responsible thing to do.”
Palm will not make any comments about potential successors but wants to leave that process to the town committees.
Whatever comes next for Palm, her passion for good government remains.
“I still have the fire in my belly,” she said.