Barbara Wright McConnell (October 5, 1936 – October 21, 2016) was an American

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politician from

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, who served in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

from 1978 to 1982 and in the cabinet of former Governor

James Florio James Joseph Florio (August 29, 1937 – September 25, 2022) was an American politician who served as the 49th governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994. He was previously the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district from 19 ...

Biography

McConnell was born Barbara Wright, daughter of Carson and Mildred Wright, in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. She grew up in

Livingston, Tennessee Livingston is a town in Overton County, Tennessee, United States, and serves as the county seat. The population was 3,905 at the 2020 census and 4,058 at the 2010 census. The current mayor, Curtis Hayes, began serving his mayoral position in Sept ...

, graduating from Livingston Academy. In 1955, she was selected Miss Putnam County and competed in the

Miss Tennessee The Miss Tennessee competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Tennessee in the Miss America Scholarship Competition. Lauren Dickson of Parsons was crowned Miss Tennessee 2022 on June 25, 2022 at the Cannon Center ...

pageant. She earned a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

degree in 1957 from Tennessee Polytechnic Institute (now

Tennessee Technological University Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie ...

). After graduating from college, she married Terry McConnell, who worked for the

United States Patent and Trademark Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...

. After moving with her husband to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, McConnell worked for U.S. Rep.

Joe L. Evins Joseph Landon Evins (October 24, 1910 – March 31, 1984) was an American lawyer and politician who served 15 terms as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1947 to 1977. Early life Evins was a native of the Blend Community ...

, first as a secretary and then as an administrative assistant. When her husband accepted an offer to work with a bank in New Jersey, they moved to Delaware Township outside

Flemington, New Jersey Flemington is a borough in and the county seat of Hunterdon County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts for ...

in a district usually dominated by Republicans. While serving in the Assembly, McConnell worked on legislation to combat discrimination against women by lending institutions, as well as legislation helping to protect women against domestic violence. She served as president of the board of the

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,Governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...

. In a crowded race, she finished with only 3% of the vote, well behind the front-runner James Florio. Florio lost in the general election to

Thomas Kean Thomas Howard Kean ( ; born April 21, 1935) is an American businessman, academic administrator and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Kean served as the 48th governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990. Following his tenure as governor, ...

but later served a term as governor from 1990 to 1994. After her defeat in the gubernatorial race, McConnell served as president of the New Jersey Food Council, a lobbying group representing the food industry. She returned to public service ten years later in the Florio administration, when she was appointed as New Jersey Commissioner of Commerce and Economic Development. She was the first woman to serve in this position. Following the end of Governor Florio's term of office in January 1994, McConnell again worked as a lobbyist, establishing the McConnell Group to represent the interests of several large companies and organizations, including Coca-Cola Bottling Co. She continued to reside in Delaware Township. She died following hip surgery on October 21, 2016, in

Raritan Township, New Jersey Raritan Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 22,185, reflecting an increase of 2,376 (+12 ...

at age 80.

References

External links

Biography of Barbara McConnell
in
Josephine's Journal
''The Overton County News,''

. Accessed March 10, 2008.
Women Leaders M-P

''New Jersey Insider''
Accessed March 10, 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:McConnell, Barbara 1936 births 2016 deaths Democratic Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly People from Delaware Township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey People from Livingston, Tennessee Politicians from Hunterdon County, New Jersey State cabinet secretaries of New Jersey Tennessee Technological University alumni Women state legislators in New Jersey 21st-century American women