Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford won the election for Madison Common Council’s District 15 on Tuesday night and is now the first out trans woman ever elected in Madison history.
Martinez-Rutherford won a very tight race in Madison’s District 15 on Madison’s east side over Brad Hinkfuss, 50.4%-49.6%, just 54 votes.
Martinez-Rutherford was featured in a Jan. 24 Madison365 article.
“It comes down to decency. We’re all human, and flesh and blood…When we spend so much time demonizing people, it’s harder to realize that we’re all just in this together. We’re just all trying to figure out how to make our lives better,” she said in the article. “When it comes down to it, that’s what we need to be about. I want to make my life better and I want to make your life better.”
There are currently zero out trans women elected officials serving in Wisconsin, according to LGBTQ+ Victory Institute.