Freddie O'Connell

O'Connell was born in Nashville, Tennessee, to Beatrice, a retired teacher, and Tim, a federal civil servant and part-time songwriter. He graduated from Montgomery Bell Academy in 1995, and earned two bachelor's degrees from Brown University in 2000, one in Music and the other in Computer Science. He is of Jewish descent through one of his grandparents. O'Connell began his career in software and technology, working for startups and publicly traded companies. He was also president of the Salemtown Neighbors Neighborhood Association. From 2005 until 2010, he co-hosted a political talk show on WRVU, the Vanderbilt University student radio station. == Political career ==

In 2002, O'Connell ran as an Independent against future Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives Beth Harwell. In 2015, O'Connell ran for the Nashville Metro Council in the 19th district, receiving 54 percent of the vote during the August 6 election. In 2019, he ran for reelection unopposed. In the first round of voting, O'Connell led all candidates with 27.2% of the vote. He defeated Alice Rolli in the runoff on September 14, 2023, winning 64% of the vote. He was sworn into office on September 25. == Personal life ==

O'Connell lives in the Salemtown neighborhood of Nashville with his partner, Dr. Whitney Boon, an attending child neurologist at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, and their two children. == Electoral history ==