Patricia O'Lynn facts for kids

Patricia O'Lynn (born 28 September 1989) is a politician, teacher, and researcher from Northern Ireland. She was a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the Alliance Party from 2022 to 2023. She was elected to represent the North Antrim area in the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election.

Patricia O'Lynn's Political Journey

Starting in Politics

In 2016, Patricia O'Lynn worked as an intern for a U.S. Senator named John McCain. This was part of a special program called the Washington-Ireland Program.

Later, in 2017, she ran for election to the Northern Ireland Assembly in North Antrim. She didn't win that time. She also ran in the UK general election for North Antrim but was not elected.

Becoming a Councillor

Patricia O'Lynn then became a councillor for the Ballymena area. Councillors are local politicians who help make decisions for their local community. She was elected in the 2019 local elections to the Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.

In 2019, she ran again in the UK general election for North Antrim. She got more votes this time, showing growing support.

From April to October 2021, she worked as a special adviser. She helped the Justice Minister, Naomi Long, with her work.

Serving as an MLA

On 7 May 2022, Patricia O'Lynn made history. She was elected as the first ever Alliance Party MLA for North Antrim. She was also the first woman to represent that area in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Her win was a big surprise in North Antrim, which usually votes for other parties.

She won by a small number of votes against the previous MLA, Mervyn Storey. This close win was one of the tightest in Northern Ireland.

On 22 February 2023, Patricia O'Lynn announced she would leave her role as an MLA on 31 March. She decided to take a new job at Queen's University Belfast. She said it was an "honour" to serve the people of North Antrim. However, she was frustrated that the Assembly was not fully working.

After she resigned, another Alliance Party member, Sian Mulholland, took her place.

Patricia O'Lynn's Academic Life

In 2021, Patricia O'Lynn finished her advanced research at Queen’s University Belfast. She earned a PhD, which is a very high academic degree. Her research focused on why young people are excluded from school in Northern Ireland. The title of her research was 'Mainstreams, Margins and the Spaces In-Between: Youth Experiences of School Exclusion in Northern Ireland'.

She also received special awards and scholarships for her studies. She officially graduated with her PhD on 2 July 2022.

Academic Works