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Shaunna O'Connell
Shaunna O'Connell (Republican Party) was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, representing the 3rd Bristol District. She assumed office in 2011. She left office on January 6, 2020.
O'Connell (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives to represent the 3rd Bristol District. She won in the general election on November 6, 2018.
O'Connell resigned from her position in the Massachusetts House of Representatives on January 6, 2020, after being elected mayor of Taunton, Massachusetts.[1]
Biography
O'Connell graduated from Massasoit Community College. Her professional experience includes working as a certified Massachusetts court reporter. She also served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 2010 to 2020.
Committee assignments
2019-2020
O'Connell was assigned to the following committees:
- Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery Joint Committee
- Human Resources and Employee Engagement Committee, Ranking Minority
- House Global Warming and Climate Change Committee, Ranking Minority
- House Post Audit and Oversight Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Post Audit and Oversight |
| • Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities Joint |
| • Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Recovery Joint |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, O'Connell served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Post Audit and Oversight |
| • Global Warming and Climate Change |
| • Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities Joint |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, O'Connell served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Ethics |
| • Personnel and Administration |
| • Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities Joint |
| • Mental Health and Substance Abuse Joint |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, O'Connell served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Ethics |
| • Personnel and Administration |
| • Ways and Means |
| • Ways and Means Joint |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2018
General election
General election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District
Incumbent Shaunna O'Connell defeated Emily Farrer in the general election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Shaunna O'Connell (R) | 61.5 | 8,334 |
| Emily Farrer (D) | 38.5 | 5,215 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 10 | ||
| Total votes: 13,559 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District
Emily Farrer advanced from the Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District on September 4, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Emily Farrer | 100.0 | 1,353 | |
| Total votes: 1,353 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District
Incumbent Shaunna O'Connell advanced from the Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District on September 4, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Shaunna O'Connell | 100.0 | 1,337 |
| Total votes: 1,337 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2016
Elections for the Massachusetts House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on September 8, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 7, 2016.
Incumbent Shaunna O'Connell defeated Estele Borges in the Massachusetts House of Representatives Third Bristol District general election.[2][3]
| Massachusetts House of Representatives, Third Bristol District General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Shaunna O'Connell Incumbent |
58.65% | 10,520 | |
| Democratic | Estele Borges | 41.35% | 7,417 | |
| Total Votes | 17,937 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth | ||||
Incumbent Shaunna O'Connell ran unopposed in the Massachusetts House of Representatives Third Bristol District Republican Primary.[4][5]
| Massachusetts House of Representatives, Third Bristol District Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Shaunna O'Connell Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for the Massachusetts House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on September 9, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3, 2014. No candidates filed to run in the Democratic primary; Keavin P. Duffy mounted a successful sticker campaign to win the nomination. Incumbent Shaunna O'Connell was unopposed in the Republican primary. O'Connell defeated Duffy in the general election.[6]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Shaunna O'Connell Incumbent |
61.3% | 6,824 | |
| Democratic | Keavin Duffy | 38.7% | 4,300 | |
| Total Votes | 11,124 | |||
2012
O'Connell won re-election in the 2012 election for Massachusetts House of Representatives Third Bristol District. O'Connell was unopposed in the September 6 Republican primary and defeated Sherry Costa-Hanlon (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Shaunna O'Connell Incumbent |
56.5% | 9,434 | |
| Democratic | Sherry Costa-Hanlon | 43.5% | 7,274 | |
| Total Votes | 16,708 | |||
2010
O'Connell won election to the Third Bristol seat in 2010. She had no primary opposition. O'Connell defeated James Fagan (D) in the general election on November 2, 2010.
Campaign themes
2012
O'Connell's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[9]
Restoring Integrity To Beacon Hill
- Excerpt: "As your State Representative, I have kept my promise to opt out of the state pension system and to refuse per diems. Moreover, I have supported reforms to create more transparency at the State House."
Education
- Excerpt: "She cares very deeply about our children being prepared to compete in the new global economy. As a product of our local schools, Shaunna understands the challenges facing our schools and will fight to support their mission."
Illegal Immigration
- Excerpt: "Shaunna has supported stringent reforms to deal with the issue of illegal immigration. She sees the issue as one that threatens the state's economy by overburdening the state's social service budget and one of homeland security."
Lowering Our Tax Burden
- Excerpt: "Raising taxes during a recession only makes our state's economic situation worse while further burdening the taxpayers."
Promoting Small Business And Our Local Economy
- Excerpt: "Three out of every four new jobs in Massachusetts are created not by big companies, but rather by small business."
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Massachusetts scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the Massachusetts State Legislature was in session from January 1 to January 5.
- Legislators are scored on bills of interest to an organization that pledges "to make government more transparent, make fiscally responsible choices, and to hold the line on taxes."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on public interest issues.
- Legislators are scored on their sponsorship of legislation related to animal issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored by the organization on votes that "can show the distinction between a progressive legislator, and everyone else."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 2 through December 31.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Massachusetts General Court was in formal session from January 3 to July 31. The legislature was in informal session from August 1 to December 31.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 4 through November 15. The legislature held an informal session from November 16 to January 2.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 6 through July 31.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 7, 2015, through January 5, 2016.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 14 through August 1.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 2 to December 31.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 4 through July 31.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 5 through November 16.
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Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
O'Connell and her husband, Ted, have two children.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ [https://www.wpri.com/news/elections/special-taunton-easton-election-set-to-fill-oconnell-seat/ WPRI 12, "Special Taunton, Easton election set to fill O’Connell seat," January 6, 2020
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "2016 State election candidates," accessed October 3, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "Election data lookup," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Candidates (Democratic)," accessed June 20, 2016
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonweath of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Election Statistics," accessed October 14, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "2014 State Primary Candidates," accessed September 9, 2014
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "2012 State Primary Results," accessed February 13, 2014
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "Return of Votes - For Massachusetts State Election - November 6, 2012," accessed February 13, 2014
- ↑ "shaunnaoconnell," Official Campaign Website
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Massachusetts House of Representatives 3rd Bristol District 2011-2020 |
Succeeded by - |
