their children good-paying summer jobs with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. In May 2013, O'Connor suggested that the Catholic Church and other religious institutions and not for profit organizations should pay property taxes and be billed for water provided by the City of Chicago. O'Connor's comments were in support of a plan by Mayor Rahm Emanuel to charge such organizations for water which had traditionally been provided without charge to not for profit organizations. “The silliest things can be said and people latch onto it.” O’Connor said. “For Chrissake, we sell everybody water! And now all of a sudden because we’re a church, we’re not supposed to sell them water? At some point, i think what’s gonna happen is someone’s gonna say how about looking at property taxes? We’ll give ya free water. How about paying for the property you own.” O'Connor further suggested that the Catholic Church should not criticize the plan to bill it for water use, but ought to address its clerical abuse scandals. O'Connor is married to Barbara O'Connor, a real estate broker. In the last decade Barbara has built a successful business selling houses and condos, many of which could not have been built without zoning changes enacted by the city council. Barbara sold more than $22 million worth of houses and condos in the 40th ward after the projects were enabled by Alderman O'Connor. Unsuccessful campaigns for other offices In 1990, O'Connor was defeated by Cecil Partee in a four-way race for the Democratic nomination for Cook County State's Attorney in the Democratic primary on March 20, 1990, with Partee garnering 49% of the vote to O'Connor's 37.5%. O'Connor was defeated in his challenge to Republican incumbent Jack O'Malley in a campaign for Cook County State's Attorney in the general election of November 3, 1992, with O'Malley garnering 62% of the vote to O'Connor's 38%. O'Connor lost to O'Malley in O'Connor's own ward, 8,516 to 9,363. On Tuesday, March 3, 2009, O'Connor finished fifth in a 12-way race in the primary election for the Democratic Party nomination for the United States House of Representatives in the special election called to replace US Rep. Rahm Emanuel in Illinois's 5th congressional district. References Living people Chicago City Council members 1955 births 21st-century American politicians