Dianne H. Hesselbein (' Conway; born March 10, 1971) is an American
Democratic
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
politician from
Middleton, Wisconsin. She is the minority leader of the
Wisconsin Senate since December 2023; she has been a member of the Senate since January 2023, representing
Wisconsin's 27th Senate district
The 27th Senate District of Wisconsin is one of 33 districts in the Wisconsin Senate. Located in south-central Wisconsin, the district comprises most of the northwest quadrant of Dane County. It includes much of the west side of the city of ...
. She previously served ten years in the
Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the
79th Assembly district from 2013 through 2022.
Biography
Dianne Hesselbein was born Dianne Conway in
Madison, Wisconsin, in March 1971. She graduated from
La Follette High School
Robert M. La Follette High School is a public school located in Madison, Wisconsin, serving the city's far east side with its attendance boundaries including parts of the City of Madison, City of Fitchburg, Town of Blooming Grove, and Town of Burke ...
in 1989 and went on to attend the
University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh, where she earned her bachelor's degree in 1993. She then obtained her master's in
religious studies from
Edgewood College in 1996.
She subsequently moved to
Middleton, Wisconsin, just west of Madison, where she was electedto the
Dane County board of supervisors. In November 2012, she was elected to the
Wisconsin State Assembly without opposition, running on the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
ticket. She was subsequently re-elected in 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2020,
and rose within the caucus to become assistant minority leader from 2017 through 2022.
In December 2021, long-time incumbent state senator
Jon Erpenbach announced he would not run for a seventh term in 2022. A week later, Hesselbein announced she would run for the open Senate seat. She faced no opposition in the Democratic primary, and went on to defeat Republican candidate Robert Relph with 68% of the vote in the November general election.
She was sworn in as state senator in January 2023. In December 2023, she was elected minority leader of the Wisconsin Senate following the resignation of
Melissa Agard
Melissa Kristen Agard (born March 28, 1969) is an American small business owner and Democratic politician from Madison, Wisconsin. She is a member of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 16th Senate district since 2021. She also served as ...
.
Personal life and family
Dianne Hesselbein's first husband was Scott Edmundson, during that marriage she was known as Dianne Edmundson. They were married in 1995 and had two children together before divorcing in 2000.
She took the name Dianne Hesselbein when she married airline pilot Robert Hesselbein, with whom she had one more child. She now resides in Middleton with her husband, who is now retired.
Electoral history
Wisconsin Assembly (2012–2020)
Wisconsin Senate (2022)
, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 8, 2022
References
External links
Official (Senate) websiteCampaign websiteSenator Dianne H. Hesselbeinat
Wisconsin Legislature
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1971 births
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
County supervisors in Wisconsin
Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Democratic Party Wisconsin state senators
Edgewood College alumni
Living people
People from Middleton, Wisconsin
Politicians from Madison, Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh alumni
Women state legislators in Wisconsin
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