Mary Mitchell O'Connor (born 10 June 1959) is an Irish former

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

politician who served as a

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

from 2017 to 2020 and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation from 2016 to 2017. She served as a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in County Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built up alongside a small existing settlement following 1816 legislation th ...

constituency from 2011 to 2020.

Early and personal life

Born Mary O'Connor in Milltown,

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

. She graduated from

Carysfort College Our Lady of Mercy College, Carysfort (commonly known as Carysfort College) was a ''College of Education'' in Dublin, Ireland from its foundation in 1877 until its closure in 1988. Educating primary school teachers, and located in a parkland cam ...

and NUI, Maynooth, and worked as a teacher. She was appointed principal of Scoil Cholmcille,

Skryne Skryne or Skreen ( , or originally called The Hill of Acaill) is a village in County Meath, Ireland. On and around a hill between the N2 and N3 roads, it is 10 km south-east of the centre of Navan and 35 km north-west of the centre ...

County Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

. In 1999, she became school principal at The Harold School,

Glasthule Glasthule ( ; ) is a suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is along County Dublin, County Dublin’s south coast, between Dún Laoghaire, Sandycove, Glenageary and Dalkey. Amenities Sandycove and Glasthule are served by a number ...

, a position she held until her election to the Dáil. She lives in

Cabinteely Cabinteely () is a suburb of Dublin's southside. It is in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, County Dublin, Ireland. The population of all electoral divisions labelled as Cabinteely was 15,864 as of the 2022 census. Geography Cabinteely lies around t ...

, Dublin. She is divorced and has two sons from her marriage.

Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council: 2004–2011

In 2004, as a

Progressive Democrats The Progressive Democrats (, literally "The Democratic Party"), commonly referred to as the PDs, were a conservative liberal political party in Ireland. The party's history spanned 24 years, from its formation in 1985 to its dissolution in 20 ...

candidate, she was elected to

Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council () is the local authority of the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It is one of three local authorities that succeeded the former Dublin County Council on its abolition on 1 January 1994 a ...

. As a councillor, she campaigned against the reintroduction of university fees, against the budget-related increase in pupil-teacher ratios. In 2006, when the

Maritime Museum A maritime museum (sometimes nautical museum) is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are naval museums, which focus on navy, navies and the m ...

closed, she called on the council to financially support it. In December 2007, she resigned from the Progressive Democrats and joined

. Welcoming her to the party,

Enda Kenny Enda Kenny (born 24 April 1951) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2011 to 2017, Leader of Fine Gael from 2002 to 2017, Minister for Defence (Ireland), Minister for Defence from May to July 2014 and 2016 to 201 ...

said that it was "the first move by a

public representative to join an alternative party since the general election". Mitchell O'Connor said that she "made a decision on how best to represent the people that elected me". In 2008–2009, she was Chairperson of Dún Laoghaire Area Committee for Transport, Economic Development and Planning. In June 2009, she was re-elected to Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. She was the Chairperson of Dún Laoghaire Area Committee for Environment, Housing, Culture, Community Development and Amenities. In August 2010, she called for a reform of

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

, so that women can work efficiently there. She campaigned for the eviction of men who are perpetrators of domestic violence.

Dáil Éireann: 2011–2020

In December 2010, she was selected as a

candidate for the

constituency. Mitchell O'Connor was elected as a TD for the Dún Laoghaire constituency at the 2011 general election. The newly elected Fine Gael TD surprised staff at

Leinster House Leinster House () is the seat of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Originally, it was the ducal palace of the Duke of Leinster, Dukes of Leinster. Since 1922, it has been a complex of buildings which houses Oirea ...

on 2 March 2011, by driving her campaign car across the pedestrian plinth in the Dáil car park and down the steps. On 8 June 2015, Mitchell O'Connor was selected by Dún Laoghaire Fine Gael as their candidate to contest the next general election at a selection convention. She defeated councillors Barry Ward and Maria Bailey, daughter of John Bailey, although Bailey was later added to the ticket, and both were elected. After a delay due to talks on government formation, Mitchell O'Connor was appointed Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation in May 2016. Faced with the challenges to Ireland posed by the 2016 British vote to leave the European Union, she set up a

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

unit and boosted staffing in the Industrial Development Authority and Enterprise Ireland.McNamara, Maedhbh. A woman's place is in the Cabinet:women ministers in Irish governments 1919-2019. Drogheda, Sea Dog Books,2020.ISBN 978-1-913275-06-8 After

Leo Varadkar Leo Eric Varadkar ( ; born 18 January 1979) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2017 to 2020 and from 2022 to 2024, as Tánaiste from 2020 to 2022, and as leader of Fine Gael from 2017 to 2024. A Teachta Dála, ...

was appointed

Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

in June 2017, she was not re-appointed to cabinet, but was instead appointed by the government as Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills with responsibility for Higher Education. This was a "

super junior Super Junior (; stylized in all caps), also known as SJ or SuJu, is a South Korean boy band. The group is composed of Leeteuk, Heechul, Yesung, Shindong, Sungmin, Eunhyuk, Siwon, Donghae, Ryeowook, and Kyuhyun. Han Geng, Kibum, and ...

" role which allowEd her attend cabinet meetings, without a vote. In November 2018, Mitchell O'Connor announced female only academic posts to increase the proportion of senior female academics in universities and institutes of technology in Ireland. There had never been a female university president in 400 years of higher education. She opened applications to the senior academic leadership initiative in June 2019. In the 2020 general election, O'Connor stood for re-election but lost her seat. ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'' reported her defeat as "the big surprise" of the Dún Laoghaire election.

Campaigns and policies

In July 2011, Mitchell O'Connor turned

pink in aid of

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

. Mitchell O'Connor is pro-choice and supported repealing the Eighth Amendment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell Oconnor, Mary 1959 births Living people Alumni of Carysfort College Alumni of Maynooth University Fine Gael TDs Members of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown Council Members of the 31st Dáil Members of the 32nd Dáil Ministers for enterprise, trade and employment Ministers of state of the 32nd Dáil Politicians from Dún Laoghaire Politicians from County Galway Progressive Democrats local councillors 21st-century women Teachtaí Dála Women government ministers of the Republic of Ireland Women heads of schools in Ireland Women ministers of state of the Republic of Ireland People from Milltown, County Galway Fine Gael local councillors