 O'Connell served as a Trustee and as Deputy Mayor of the Village of East Williston from 1991 through 1998.Prior to her taking office as County Clerk on January 1, 2006, O'Connell served as the first woman to be sent by the 17th District to the New York State Assembly, where she served as ranking member of the Assembly's Health Committee and on the Judiciary, Insurance and Ethics Committees.She was also a member of the Sexual Assault and Violence Education (S.A.V.E.)