Rokita speaks to students, CRs

Surrounded by IU College Republicans, Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita spoke Tuesday night about how he became the youngest person to hold the office, at the age of 32, and how he followed the road less traveled.\nRokita, a graduate of the IU School of Law, came to IU to speak about young voters and his experience in politics.\nHe also discussed how being the youngest secretary of state made him realize the importance of younger representation in the political realm. Rokita was introduced by freshman Maggie Daniels, daughter of gubernatorial candidate Mitch Daniels. Rokita chuckled when she mentioned his age.\n"I feel kind of ancient. When I was in college, to me, 34 seemed old," he said. "I was 32 when I was elected to secretary of state in 2002, and there has been a fascination with my age. My political advisors told me to not include the fact that I was so young in my Web site profile. But if you look on my Web site, I didn't take their advice. It's important to share my story of how I got here."\nRokita graduated from the IU law school and immediately went on to work for several unsuccessful campaigns. During that experience, he learned a lot about what it takes to run for office, he said.\n"I saw what works and what doesn't," Rokita said. "It was an amazing experience, and I wouldn't trade it for the world."\nOther members of the IUCRs were in attendance to hear about the job of the secretary of state and to find out more about Todd Rokita.\nAfter campaigning, Rokita began working for a private law practice until 1997, when he became deputy secretary of state.\nAs the deputy secretary of state, Rokita helped implement friendly "e-government" services and provided tougher securities enforcement.\nRokita advised attendees not to plan out their careers but, rather, to set goals.\n"I thought that I would be deputy secretary for a year, then one year turned into five years," she said. "Timing is everything, and so many things are outside your control. You can't make career plans, but you can have goals. You need to have your personal and financial ducks in a row."\nRokita also spoke of his time running for election and the lengths he went to for his party's nomination.\nRokita was nominated by his party at their convention, at which 2,000 delegates were in attendance. Prior to the convention, Rokita traveled over 102,000 miles without leaving the state to personally talk to over 1,500 of those delegates either in their homes or offices.\nAfter his nomination, Rokita ran against former Bloomington Mayor John Fernandez for secretary of state. Rokita won by 12 percentage points. He said that money wasn't the only winning factor in the race.\n"I raised $100,000 by the time I was nominated," he said. "Then, by the time was nominated, I had almost zero dollars. On election day, I had a 12-point advantage with only half the money Fernandez had. So, money isn't everything in Indiana."\nIUCRs member and sophomore Jeff Evitts said he came to hear more information about the role of the secretary of state.\n"I wanted to come and hear more about Rokita," Evitts said. "I didn't know what the secretary of state does. I think it's very important for him to come to IU in his off-election year to talk to students."\nChairman of the College Republicans and senior Angel Rivera attended the event to show his support for Rokita.\n"We are proud to have him here and find out about his career and what he does for the state of Indiana," Rivera said.\nBefore he left, Rokita encouraged students to choose their own future.\n"Robert Frost said to take the road less traveled. I chose the more humble road. If you have courage, I'd like to humbly submit to you that I am an example. I love the law, but I thoroughly love what I am doing right now. I can't promise you riches, but I can promise a certain degree of satisfaction. Now, we're 21 days before the election, and it will be one of the state's finest hours."\n-- Contact senior writer Lindsey Jancek at lmjancek@indiana.edu.