Sen. Melissa Agard, D-Madison, and Dane County Supervisor Dana Pellebon advanced in the primary election for Dane County executive Tuesday in a race contested by four candidates.
Agard, Pellebon, Director of Dane County’s Office for Equity and Inclusion Wes Sparkman and Madison District 5 Ald. Regina Vidaver ran to serve the remainder of former County Executive Joe Parisi’s four-year term after his retirement in May.
Agard earned 61,283 votes, followed by Pellebon with 18,560, Vidaver with 16,269 and Sparkman with 10,789. Agard and Pellebon will advance to the general election on Nov. 5.
"Tonight’s decisive victory highlights the broad, diverse coalition we have built in every community across Dane County," Agard said in a statement published by the Cap Times. "In the days leading up to the November election I will continue to travel to every corner of our county to hear from you and reflect your voices in my campaign."
Pellebon said in a post on Twitter election night “was so many things, some good, some bad.”
“Ended the night with a devastating health diagnosis for a family member,” Pellebon wrote. “So I’ve had zero sleep and my concealer is working overtime this morning to hide the shopping bags under my eyes for this 6am interview. Here’s to next steps!”
Roughly 378,524 registered voters casted 171,680 ballots for the primaries with a 45.4% turnout percentage, according to the County Clerk's Office.
Another election will be held in the spring to decide the next county executive for a four-year term.
Marin Rosen is the city news editor for The Daily Cardinal and a second-year journalism student. Throughout her time at the Cardinal, she's written articles for city and state news. She is an intern at Channel 3000 News and runs the Badger Beat on Instagram and TikTok. Follow her on Twitter at @marin_rosen
