William O'Connor (Australian politician)

William Paul O'Connor (29 September 1910 – 18 September 1987) was an Australian politician. He was educated at Catholic schools before becoming a clerk, as well as an organiser of the Australian Workers' Union.

William O'Connor
Member of the Australian Parliament for West Sydney
In office 28 September 1946 – 10 December 1949
Preceded by	Jack Beasley
Succeeded by	Dan Minogue
Member of the Australian Parliament for Martin
In office 10 December 1949 – 10 December 1955
Preceded by	Fred Daly
Succeeded by	Seat abolished
Member of the Australian Parliament for Dalley
In office 10 December 1955 – 29 September 1969
Preceded by	Arthur Greenup
Succeeded by	Seat abolished
Personal details
Born	(1910-09-29)29 September 1910
Died	18 September 1987(1987-09-18) (aged 76)
Nationality	Australian
Political party	Australian Labor Party
Occupation	Clerk

In 1946, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for West Sydney. Following that election, one of the defeated candidates for the seat, Ronald Sarina, petitioned the High Court to declare O'Connor's election void, claiming that O'Connor's adherence to the Roman Catholic faith represented allegiance to a foreign power, which would make him ineligible to be a member of parliament under Section 44 of the Constitution of Australia. Sarina's solicitor sought leave to withdraw the petition, which was granted.[1]

Following the redistribution of 1949, O'Connor transferred to Martin, which he held until 1955. In that year, Martin was abolished, and O'Connor defeated sitting Labor MP Arthur Greenup for preselection for the seat of Dalley. O'Connor held Dalley until its abolition in 1969, at which time he retired.

He died in 1987, 11 days before his 77th birthday.[2]