MADISON, Wis. — Melissa Agard won the race for Dane County Executive on Tuesday, marking a return to local government after just over a decade in the state Legislature.
With over 60% of precincts reporting, Agard garnered 61.9% of the vote over her opponent, RCC Sexual Violence Resource Center Executive Director and former Dane County Supervisor Dana Pellebon, who received 38.1%.
All ballots have yet to be counted in the race as of 9:30 p.m.
Born and raised in Madison, Agard made her first jump into politics in 2010 when she was elected to the Dane County Board of Supervisors, representing the 18th District.
In 2012, Agard was elected to represent the 48th District in the Wisconsin State Assembly, winning in a landslide. She was elected to the State Senate in 2020, representing the 16th district, and in 2022 was voted as Minority Leader.
Agard succeeds Interim County Executive Jamie Kuhn and longtime County Executive Joe Parisi, who served in the role since 2011 before retiring in May.