On Jan. 5, a mild winter day, in spite of the rain, village officials, supporters, friends, neighbors and the press gathered on the lawn of the East Williston home of Nassau County Clerk Maureen O'Connell, a Republican, as she declared her candidacy for the New York State 7th Senatorial seat recently vacated by Republican Michael Balboni. Governor Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, has appointed Balboni as Deputy Secretary for Public Safety, the senior security and law enforcement official in his new administration

As her husband Donald held an umbrella over her, she first thanked him for his continuing support, and then said, "I'm here to thank my good friend Mike Balboni for his years of service to our community. First as our state assemblyman and then as our state senator. Over the years Mike and I worked together to solve problems for local families. I'm grateful for the support he's given me and thankful that he'll continue his fight to make New York a safer place to live."

She continued, "Now, we need a new voice to represent us in the state Senate who will fight for property tax relief, better schools and a more open and accountable government and I'm here to declare my candidacy for the state Senate.

"In the coming weeks, important decisions will be made by our state government. The families and homeowners of the 7th Senate District will have no voice in these decisions unless they can select a new senator to represent them. Therefore, I am here to call on Governor Spitzer to schedule a special election, as soon as possible, to ensure that our community isn't left out of these important decisions."

On Jan. 5, Spitzer announced that the special election would be held on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2007 for the 7th Senatorial District seat which covers all of Port Washington, Manhasset, Great Neck, Lake Success, Kings Park, Saddle Rock, East Hills, Roslyn, Roslyn Heights, Old Westbury, Westbury, Mineola, Williston Park, Herricks, New Hyde Park and Garden City Park.

O'Connell stated, "I have dedicated my life to helping people, first and foremost as a wife, a mom and nurse. I have served as the deputy mayor of East Williston, a state assemblywoman and the Nassau County clerk. I am grateful for the opportunities I've had because they have allowed me to make a difference in the lives of so many people.

"In the state Assembly I focused all my energies on reforming our health care system, improving patient care and protecting taxpayers. As the county clerk I helped make county government work better for local homeowners and move that office into the 21st century. Now, I am running for the state Senate to continue Senator Balboni's hard work.

"Further, I am running to rescue property taxpayers who are struggling with the crushing burden of unfair taxes. Seniors, young people and working families should not be taxed out of their homes. That is wrong. And I will fight for the tax relief we deserve. I'm running for the state Senate to improve our schools and make sure every tax dollar is spent inside the classroom. Our children deserve the best and I'll fight to make our schools accountable to us. I am running to reform state government and make it more open, honest and trustworthy and a government of which we can be proud.

"When I was in the state Assembly, I learned, firsthand about the problems in the state and I will work to eliminate government waste and make government more efficient. I ran for county clerk to fix the problems in that office and I'm proud of the results we have achieved. Through hard work we have made that office a model for the rest of the state. As your state senator I'll make the tough decisions that are needed. As a nurse, I'm an advocate for patients and as your state senator, I'll be an advocate for our community."

Maureen O'Connell began her professional career as a registered nurse at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset. In this position, she designed one of the nation's first programs providing comprehensive, in-home care to the hospital's cancer patients. The program delivered high-quality care to patients in the comfort of their own home, while lowering health care costs. Because of the success of this national pilot project, the federal Medicare program now covers hospice services.

To help further advocate for her patients in their constant struggle against the insurance companies, O'Connell attended St. John's Law School, after the birth of her son Donald. Subsequently, she practiced law locally in Mineola and from 1991 through 1998, served as the deputy mayor of the Village of East Williston.

In 1998, she was elected to the New York State Assembly and became the first woman elected to represent the state's 17 Assembly District and led a statewide task force on the critical shortage of nurses. Further, O'Connell was a member of an Assembly Task Force on sex crimes and violence against women and children and she was the Ranking Minority Member on the Assembly's Health Committee. While in the State Assembly, she developed a distinguished record of constituent service, including the creation of a free flu vaccination program for local seniors. Further, she introduced various measures that are now law, such as legislation requiring background checks for students enrolled in flight schools.

In November of 2005, O'Connell was elected Nassau County clerk. Through her implementation of new information technology, she modernized the county clerk's office and processed millions of backlogged records. In addition, she has developed technology initiatives providing for the e filing of documents in the state supreme court. The pilot project is a model for other counties throughout the state.

O'Connell has served on the American Cancer Society's Breast Cancer Detection Team and is an adjunct faculty member at Adelphi School of Nursing.

A lifelong resident of the 7th senatorial district, O'Connell was raised in Mineola, attended Corpus Christi Grammar School and graduated from Mineola High School. She resides in East Williston with her husband Donald.