Ann O'Donnell

Ann O'Donnell
Ann O'Donnell (Democrat) represented [the 37th] district of King County in the House of Representatives for four terms. Appointed in 1959 (at the age of twenty-four, the youngest woman to have served in the Legislature), O'Donnell died of cancer in 1965.

Born 1935, in Helena, Montana. O'Donnell graduated from Seattle University with a B.A. in Political Science and attended the University of Washington Law School. She was devoted to promoting better racial relations, and was a member of the Catholic Interracial Council, the Urban League, and the NAACP.

O'Donnell's interest in running for the Legislature developed while she worked as legislative secretary to the Speaker of the House. Very active in the Democratic Party, she earned a position on the King County Democratic Central Committee, and soon afterward was chosen for a House appointment. Representative O'Donnell's skill as a legislator was demonstrated by her popularity on both sides of the aisle. She served as chairwoman of the Labor and Industry, Insurance, and Banks & Financial Institutions committees.

--Political Pioneers, The Women Lawmakers