# Mayoral elections in Madison, Wisconsin

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Nonpartisan elections are currently held every four years to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin.

## 1997 (special)

The 1997 Madison mayoral special election was held February 17 and April 1, 1997, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It was held after the resignation of incumbent mayor Paul Soglin. It saw the election of Susan J. M. Bauman.

### Candidates

* Ray Allen, Madison School Board member
* Richard H. Anderson
* Susan J. M. Bauman, alderperson on the Madison Common Council
* Wayne Bigelow, President of the Madison Common Council
* John Hendrick, Supervisor on the Dane County Board since 1994
* Mary Lang-Sollinger, community activist and political fundraiser
* Tom Neale
* David Travis, member of the Wisconsin State Assembly

### Results

The February county and city primaries saw 42,483 ballots cast in Madison, reported as a turnout of 26% (compared to election-eve voter registration).
1997 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Wayne Bigelow | Wayne Bigelow | 9,332 | 22.38 |
| Susan J. M. Bauman | Susan J. M. Bauman | 9,100 | 21.82 |
| Ray Allen | Ray Allen | 7,954 | 19.07 |
| John Hendrick | John Hendrick | 6,875 | 16.49 |
| David Travis | David Travis | 4,588 | 11.00 |
| Mary Lang-Sollinger | Mary Lang-Sollinger | 3,513 | 8.42 |
| Richard H. Anderson | Richard H. Anderson | 198 | 0.48 |
| Tom Neale | Tom Neale | 145 | 0.35 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 41,695 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 788 | 1.85 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 25% | 25% |
The April county and city general elections saw 52,619 ballots cast in Madison, reported as a turnout of 32% (compared to election-eve voter registration).
1997 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Susan J. M. Bauman | Susan J. M. Bauman | 25,455 | 49.23 |
| Wayne Bigelow | Wayne Bigelow | 25,389 | 49.10 |
| Denis Collins write-in | Denis Collins write-in | 462 | 0.89 |
| Other write-ins | Other write-ins | 398 | 0.76 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 51,704 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 915 | 1.74 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 32% | 32% |

## 1999

The 1999 Madison mayoral election was held April 9, 1999, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw the reelection of incumbent mayor Susan J. M. Bauman.
Since only two candidates ran, no primary was held.

### Results

The April county and city general saw 45,248 ballots cast in Madison, reported as a turnout of 31% (compared to election-eve voter registration).
1999 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Susan J. M. Bauman (incumbent) | Susan J. M. Bauman (incumbent) | 35,204 | 80.04 |
| Eugene Parks | Eugene Parks | 8,294 | 18.85 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 483 | 1.09 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 43,981 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 1,267 | 2.80 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 31% | 31% |

## 2003

The 2003 Madison mayoral election was held February 20 and April 4, 2003, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw the election of Dave Cieslewicz. Incumbent mayor Susan J. M. Bauman was eliminated in the primary.

### Candidates

* Susan J. M. Bauman, incumbent mayor
* Dave Cieslewicz, former member of the Dane County Board of Supervisors
* Davy Mayer
* Will Sandstrom
* Paul R. Soglin, former mayor
* Bert G. Zipperer

### Results

2003 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Dave Cieslewicz | Dave Cieslewicz | 14,326 | 35.16 |
| Paul R. Soglin | Paul R. Soglin | 14,144 | 34.72 |
| Bert G. Zipperer | Bert G. Zipperer | 6,610 | 16.22 |
| Susan J. M. Bauman (incumbent) | Susan J. M. Bauman (incumbent) | 4,681 | 11.49 |
| Will Sandstrom | Will Sandstrom | 492 | 1.20 |
| Davy Mayer | Davy Mayer | 389 | 0.95 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 92 | 0.22 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 40,734 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 245 | 0.60 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 26% | 26% |
2003 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Dave Cieslewicz | Dave Cieslewicz | 29,717 | 50.76 |
| Paul R. Soglin | Paul R. Soglin | 28,528 | 48.73 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 291 | 0.49 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 58,536 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 555 | 1.35 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 38% | 38% |

## 2007

The 2007 Madison mayoral election was held February 22 and April 5, 2007, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw the reelection of incumbent mayor Dave Cieslewicz.

### Candidates

* Ray Allen, Madison School Board member and 1997 mayoral candidate
* Dave Cieslewicz, incumbent mayor
* Peter Munoz
* Will Sandstrom, 2003 mayoral candidate

### Results

2007 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | 15,488 | 57.50 |
| Ray Allen | Ray Allen | 8,042 | 29.86 |
| Peter Munoz | Peter Munoz | 2,661 | 9.88 |
| Will Sandstrom | Will Sandstrom | 641 | 2.38 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 100 | 0.37 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 26,932 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 300 | 1.10 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 17% | 17% |
2007 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | 30,812 | 61.78 |
| Ray Allen | Ray Allen | 18,816 | 37.72 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 244 | 0.48 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 49,872 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 1,519 | 3.14 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 30% | 30% |

## 2011

The 2011 Madison mayoral election was held April 4, 2003, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw former mayor Paul Soglin return to the mayoralty by unseating incumbent mayor Dave Cieslewicz.
The primary and general election both coincided with those for a high-profile state supreme court race.

### Candidates

* John Blotz
* Dave Cieslewicz, incumbent mayor
* Dennis Amadeus de Nure
* Nick Hart
* Paul R. Soglin, former mayor

### Results

2011 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul R. Soglin | Paul R. Soglin | 18,693 | 49.49 |
| Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | 17,500 | 46.33 |
| Nick Hart | Nick Hart | 598 | 1.58 |
| John Blotz | John Blotz | 569 | 1.50 |
| Dennis Amadeus de Nure | Dennis Amadeus de Nure | 274 | 0.72 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 137 | 0.36 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 37,771 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 818 | 2.12 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 22% | 22% |
2011 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul R. Soglin | Paul R. Soglin | 44,542 | 49.76 |
| Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | Dave Cieslewicz (incumbent) | 43,829 | 48.96 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 1,133 | 1.26 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 89,504 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 4,472 | 4.76 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 54% | 54% |

## 2015

The 2015 Madison mayoral election was held February 17 and April 7, 2015, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw the reelection of incumbent mayor Paul Soglin.

### Candidates

* Richard V. Brown Sr.
* Christopher Daly
* Bridget Maniaci, former 2nd district member of the Madison Common Council (2009–2013)
* Scott Resnick, 8th district member of the Madison Common Council since 2011 and tech executive
* Paul Soglin, incumbent mayor

### Results

2015 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | 11,856 | 52.8 |
| Scott Resnick | Scott Resnick | 5,223 | 23.3 |
| Bridget Maniaci | Bridget Maniaci | 3,311 | 14.7 |
| Richard V. Brown, Sr. | Richard V. Brown, Sr. | 1,034 | 4.6 |
| Christopher Daly | Christopher Daly | 973 | 4.3 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 63 | 0.3 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 22,460 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | | |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 12% | 12% |
2015 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | 37,734 | 72.0 |
| Scott Resnick | Scott Resnick | 14,195 | 27.1 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 506 | 1.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 52,435 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 1,812 | 3.34 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 30% | 30% |

## 2019

The 2019 Madison mayoral election was held February 19 and April 2, 2019, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. It saw the election of Satya Rhodes-Conway, who unseated incumbent mayor Paul Soglin. Conway became the second woman and the first openly-gay individual elected mayor in the city's history.

### Candidates

* Maurice "Mo" Cheeks, 10th district member of the Madison Common Council since 2013 and Vice President of Business Development at MIOsoft
* Nick Hart
* Satya Rhodes-Conway, former 12th district member of the Madison Common Council
* Raj Shukla
* Paul Soglin, incumbent mayor

### Results

2019 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | 10,771 | 28.6 |
| Satya Rhodes-Conway | Satya Rhodes-Conway | 10,448 | 27.7 |
| Mo Cheeks | Mo Cheeks | 8,801 | 23.3 |
| Raj Shukla | Raj Shukla | 6,954 | 18.4 |
| Nick Hart | Nick Hart | 386 | 1.0 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 346 | 0.9 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 37,706 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 47 | 0.12 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 21% | 21% |
2019 Madison mayoral general election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Satya Rhodes-Conway | Satya Rhodes-Conway | 47,915 | 61.9 |
| Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | Paul R. Soglin (incumbent) | 29,150 | 37.7 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 311 | 0.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 77,376 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 2,077 | 2.61 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 44% | 44% |

## 2023

The 2023 Madison mayoral election was held on April 4, 2023, to elect the mayor of Madison, Wisconsin.
A primary election was held on February 21, 2023, to narrow down the candidates to two. It saw record turnout due to the concurrent primary for the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election. Satya Rhodes-Conway and Gloria Reyes qualified for the general election, while Scott Kerr was eliminated. Daniel Howell Jr., a write-in candidate, planned on running as a write-in candidate for the general election in addition to the primary.

### Candidates

* Daniel Howell Jr., caseworker and former Wisconsin Badgers football player (write-in)
* Scott Kerr, traffic engineer (endorsed Reyes in the runoff)
* Gloria Reyes, former deputy mayor and president of the Madison Board of Education
* Satya Rhodes-Conway, incumbent mayor

### Forums

2023 Madison mayoral candidate forums :
| No. | Date | Host | Link | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan |
| Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | | | | |
| Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  O Out of race | Daniel Howell Jr. | Scott Kerr | Gloria Reyes | Satya Rhodes-Conway |
| 1 | January 30, 2023 | Community associations | YouTube | N | P | P | P |
| 2 | January 31, 2023 | Urban League of Greater Madison | YouTube | N | P | P | P |
| 3 | February 27, 2023 | Wisconsin Policy Forum | YouTube | N | O | P | P |

### Endorsements

U.S. Representatives
* Mark Pocan, WI-2 (2013–present)
County officials
* Richard Kilmer, former Dane County supervisor from the 4th district (2016–2020)
* Patrick Miles, chair of the Dane County Board of Supervisors from the 34th district (2006–present)
* Joe Parisi, Dane County executive (2011–present) and former Wisconsin state assemblyman from the 48th district (2005–2011)
Madison alders
* Juliana Bennett, 8th ward (2021–present)
* Patrick Heck, 2nd ward (2019–present)
* Sabrina Madison, 17th ward (2022–present)
* Erik Paulson, 3rd ward (2022–present)
* Mike Verveer, 4th ward (1995–present)
Madison school board members
* Savion Castro, 2nd ward (2019–present)
* Ali Muldrow, 4th ward (2019–present)
* Nicki Vander Meulen, 7th ward (2017–present)
Editorial boards
* The Badger Herald
* The Capital Times
Labor unions
* American Federation of Teachers Wisconsin
* Madison Teachers Incorporated
* Wisconsin AFL-CIO
Organizations
* 314 Action
* Citizen Action of Wisconsin - affiliate of People's Action
* EMILY's List
* Fair Wisconsin PAC
* LGBTQ Victory Fund
* LPAC
* Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin - affiliate of Planned Parenthood Action Fund
* Progressive Change Campaign Committee
* Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters
Political Parties
* Dane County Democratic Party (co-endorsement with Reyes)
County officials
* Kalvin Barrett, Dane County Sheriff (2021–present)
Local officials
* David Couper, former Chief of the Madison Police Department (1972–1993)
* Christina Gomez Schmidt, Madison school board member from the 6th ward (2004–2023)
* Barbara Harrington-McKinney, Madison alder from the 1st ward (2015–2023)
* Ananda Mirilli, former Madison school board member from the 5th ward (2019–2022)
* Paul Soglin, former mayor of Madison (1973–1979, 1989–1997, and 2011–2019)
* Noble Wray, former Chief of the Madison Police Department (2004–2013)
Editorial boards
* Wisconsin State Journal
Labor unions
* Madison Professional Police Officers Association
Political parties
* Dane County Democratic Party (co-endorsement with Rhodes-Conway)

### Results

2023 Madison mayoral primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Satya Rhodes-Conway (incumbent) | Satya Rhodes-Conway (incumbent) | 43,822 | 59.5 |
| Gloria Reyes | Gloria Reyes | 20,507 | 27.9 |
| Scott Kerr | Scott Kerr | 8,658 | 11.8 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 608 | 0.8 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 73,595 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 2,141 | 2.83 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 39% | 39% |
2023 Madison mayoral runoff results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Satya Rhodes-Conway (incumbent) | Satya Rhodes-Conway (incumbent) | 63,066 | 55.2 |
| Gloria Reyes | Gloria Reyes | 50,402 | 44.1 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 755 | 0.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 114,223 | 100 |
| Undervotes | Undervotes | 6,170 | 5.12 |
| Voter turnout | Voter turnout | 63% | 63% |