Cotter to Receive National Leadership Award

By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA

November 30th 2024

State Representative Megan Cotter has received a national award from the Lexington Kentucky-based Council of State Governments.

First elected in 2022 and recently reelected to a second term, Cotter, a Democrat, represents District 39, comprising the towns of Richmond, Hopkinton and Exeter.

Cotter, who is 40, is the only Rhode Island legislator to receive the award, which honors legislators who were age 40 or younger on Dec. 31 of the year in which they were nominated.

David Adkins, the CEO of the Council, described this year’s recipients in a press release:

“The 2024 CSG 20 Under 40 Leadership Award recipients represent the best of public service, demonstrating that leadership knows no age,” he wrote. “Their achievements inspire confidence in the promise of state government to meet the challenges of tomorrow.”

Cotter said she had been nominated by House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi and then had to submit an application.

“You get nominated, and then, you have to apply,” she said. “You also have to submit your résumé, three letters of recommendation, and answer three questions in essay form. It’s actually a competitive award, so it’s really exciting to get.”

This year’s award recipients have been described as “diverse,” both personally and politically, but they have demonstrated their commitment to bipartisan collaboration.

“It really means a lot to win that and to represent our community there,” Cotter said. “You have to work bipartisan to get the award. You have to prove and show you’ve done bipartisan work.”

One of Cotter’s bipartisan initiatives was her work with Minority House Leader Michael Chippendale after the Exeter brush fire in 2023.

“I think when the Speaker nominated me, that’s what he had in mind,” she said. “He wrote my letter of recommendation. I actually had four letters of recommendation. I had the Speaker write one, two of my colleagues in the House and I had the CEO, Alison Croke, from Wood River Health write one talking about the van that I had worked to get for Wood River Health.”

Cotter was nominated for the award about six months ago. She was notified at the end of October that she was one of the winners but she was asked to wait until last week to make a public announcement.

The awards ceremony will take place at the Council’s National Conference from Dec. 4 to Dec. 7 in New Orleans.