A blue plaque for Marie Randall MBE, the first woman to be elected to the States, has been unveiled by the Deputy Bailiff , Jessica Roland.
Around 150 people, including schoolchildren, Deputies and members of Marie’s family, were there to celebrate the occasion.
Deputy Randall was 42 when she was elected 100 years ago in January 1924. She remained a States member for 31 years and for 24 of those years was the only woman in the Assembly.
She served on a long list of States committees and was an advocate for equal voting rights for women. In 1933 she signed an unsuccessful petition calling for the voting age for women to be reduced from 30 to 20 to match the voting age for men. She brought the matter back to the States in 1938 and, after a proposal from the Bailiff, the voting age for women was reduced to 20.
Women in Public Life nominated Marie for the blue plaque to commemorate the centenary of her election.
Speaking at the event, Shelaine Green, chair of Women in Public Life, quoted from one of the press cuttings in the Randall family scrapbooks: “Miss Randall set an example in the States which has been admirably followed. Other women have gone to the polls and, in many cases, have topped them as she did. The public has come to have a special regard for the woman deputy and many declare that, were there more of them, Guernsey would be the better for it!
“However that may be, it is true that Miss Randall made a great contribution to island welfare. Guernsey is the better for what she has done and, surely, this is as fine a tribute as one can pay to anybody. Her charm, her good sense, her ability and her desire to do good are qualities which have endeared her to us all”.
Ms Green concluded, ‘Thank you for your service to the island, Marie, and many congratulations on the 100th anniversary of your election. May those who following in your footsteps hold your values in their hearts.’
