A Recount, Alder Stays After Dropping Out: Busy Week for Madison Common Council

MADISON, Wis. (WMDX) – A recount confirms one Madison alder will hold onto his seat, with just eight more votes than his challenger. 

John Guequierre represents District 19. His challenger was Anthony Nino Amato. On election night, they were just 9 votes apart. 

Amato requested a recount. The margin was so small that neither of the candidates had to pay for it. 

A couple dozen workers counted almost 7,000 ballots by hand on Thursday. They found that Guequierre won by eight votes, not nine. 

Amato said he doesn’t plan to appeal, so Guequierre is officially named the winner. 

It’s been a busy post-election week for the Madison Common Council. On Tuesday, Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford announced that she intended to keep serving on the council, even though she had dropped out of the race and endorsed her opponent. Her name was still on the ballot, and a majority of voters elected her. 

The next Madison Common Council will be sworn in later this month.