According to candidate filings for local office due Jan. 6, more than one-third of the Dane County board is facing competitive races in the April election. There will be just three competitive races for Madison city council and two for Madison school board. In 2025, there was only one competitive school board race; in 2024, both candidates ran unopposed. 

Some of the races for Dane County board will have primaries on Feb. 17. The April 7 election also includes a race for state Supreme Court. We’ve compiled a list of the competitive races and information about the candidates below. 

Wisconsin residents can check their voter information, find out where to vote, and register at myvote.wi.gov.

State Supreme Court 

Chris Taylor, a state court of appeals judge for the Madison-based southwestern fourth district, is competing for a seat on the state’s high court against Maria Lazar, a state court of appeals judge for the Waukesha-based southeastern second district. Though the race is officially nonpartisan, Taylor is supported by Democrats and Lazar by Republicans. 

Taylor served as a Dane County Circuit Court judge from 2020 until 2023. She is also a former state Assembly member who represented the Madison area from 2011-2019 as a Democrat; her signature issues included reproductive healthcare rights and gun control. Lazar previously served as a circuit court judge in Waukesha County from 2015-2022. 

City council

Even-numbered Madison city council districts are up for election again this year after candidates competed for one-year terms in spring 2025; the winners this election will be awarded two-year terms. That’s being done to permit staggered aldermanic elections in which even-numbered districts are voted upon in even-numbered years and odd-numbered districts in odd-numbered years.

You can check which district you’re in using this website.

Bobby Gronert and Ellen Zhang, both UW-Madison students, are vying for the District 8 campus-area seat currently held by Ald. MGR Govindarajan, who is not seeking reelection. Gronert is a sophomore majoring in political science; Zhang is a sophomore majoring in sociology and economics.

Noah Lieberman, a stay-at-home dad, and Kate Blood, a grief and addiction counselor, are competing for the southside Madison District 14 seat held by Ald. Isadore Knox Jr., who is not seeking reelection. 

Islam Khilji, who has previously run for city council under the name Sammy Khilji, is challenging incumbent Ald. Barbara Harrington-McKinney for her District 20 seat on Madison’s west side.

Incumbent Alds. William Ochowicz, Mike Verveer, Davy Mayer, Yannette Figueroa Cole, Julia Matthews, Sean O’Brien and Carmella Glenn are seeking reelection unopposed.

Madison school board 

Seats on the Madison school board are not geographically bound, meaning that if you live within the school district, you’ll see both below races on your ballot. 

Daniella Molle, an equitable teaching researcher at the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, is challenging incumbent school board member Blair Mosner Feltham, who has served on the school board since 2023.

Dana Colussi-Lynde, an IT manager, is challenging incumbent board member Nicki Vander Meulen, who has served on the school board since 2017.

Dane County Board of Supervisors

There will be 13 competitive races for seats on the Dane County Board of Supervisors. You can check which district you are in on this website.

Carlos Rodríguez Lewison v. Heidi Wegleitner (i)

John Fons v. Erin Welsh (i)

Simran Arora v. Aria Trucios

Sean Burke v. Otis Harris Jr. v. Tommy Rylander (i)

Amy Larson v. Anthony Nino Amato v. Rick Cruz

Goodwill Chekwube Obieze v. Rick Rose (i)

Paula Brandmeier v. Jeff Weigand (i)

Stephen Ratzlaff v. Gussie Lewis

Dick Greffin v. David Boetcher (i)

Mitch Herl v. Lisa Jackson (i)

Aaron Linas v. Nathan McGree v. Michele Doolan (i)

Jeremy Pings v. Patrick Downing (i)

Katie Michel v. Kerry Marren (i)

Additionally, Donald Dantzler Jr. is running unopposed to replace incumbent Supv. Randy Udell.