[3] After graduating from college, she married Terry McConnell, who worked for the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
After moving with her husband to Washington, D.C., McConnell worked for U.S. Rep. Joe L. Evins, first as a secretary and then as an administrative assistant.
McConnell became active in the local Democratic Party organization, and in 1977 she was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly in a district usually dominated by Republicans.
[6] She returned to public service ten years later in the Florio administration, when she was appointed as New Jersey Commissioner of Commerce and Economic Development.
Following the end of Governor Florio's term of office in January 1994, McConnell again worked as a lobbyist, establishing the McConnell Group to represent the interests of several large companies and organizations, including Coca-Cola Bottling Co.[7] She continued to reside in Delaware Township.