While much of the attention of the Aug. 11 Wisconsin primary has been focused on the governor’s race, voters in Assembly District 76 – which covers much of Madison’s isthmus – have another important choice to make. Five candidates are running for the seat being vacated by state Rep. Francesca Hong, who is in the Democratic primary for governor.
The five candidates are Isaia Ben-Ami, Juliana Bennett, Zoe Sullivan, Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford, and Tony Castañeda. City Cast Madison sent each of them a questionnaire to hear about their priorities, the most important issues facing their district, and what distinguishes them from the other candidates. Their unedited responses are below.
What is the single most pressing issue facing the 76th and how will you address it?
Isaia Ben-Ami: Housing affordability. Rents have greatly outpaced wages, and property taxes are sky high. We need to expand the Homestead Tax Credit, grow a diverse housing stock, and connect our city with the rest of Dane County via transit. We can do this with targeted investment into cooperatives, condos, and duplexes to increase affordable supply and decrease demand by making it possible to live outside of Madison and still be able to enjoy all Madison has to offer.
Tony Castañeda: Affordability especially as it pertains to housing both for homeowners and renters. We need to take homeowners off the hook for funding our public school system at the rate that they are. We can save a lot of money by ending the failed school voucher system and rescinding some of the tax breaks for the very wealthy and corporations. We need to develop a progressive tax structure to better fund our public commons overall. We need to legalize marijuana completely for recreational and medicinal use. It's unfortunate that we have to use the sales of a controlled substance to help fund our educational system but when you see that Illinois raised over $600 million in 2025 from their legal cannabis sales it makes sense.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: The cost of living is out of control. Rent, healthcare, and property taxes keep getting more expensive while our incomes remain the same. We are being priced out of the neighborhoods we love, and Republicans refuse to act. Our government needs to be doing so much more to make life affordable. In the Assembly, I’ll raise wages, cap utility and healthcare costs, invest in truly affordable housing, deliver universal no-cost childcare, go after companies that are price gouging Wisconsin families, and lower property taxes by fully funding public schools and breaking the cycle of endless referendums.
Juliana Bennett: Increasing affordability is the most pressing issue for my district. There are working families in the 76th that are being pushed out of the homes by rising property taxes, and families who can’t even afford baby formula. I plan on addressing this by lowering rent and property taxes; funding our schools; and raising wages. We’ll lower property taxes by 44% and fund our schools with the 17-cent Millionaire Tax, AB 1209. We’ll legalize rent control and use the $2 billion in tax breaks for data centers to build homes instead. We’ll raise our minimum wage to $23/hr and tie it to the cost of living.
Zoe Sullivan: Housing is the single most pressing issue facing the district. I will address this by working to ease the restrictions on the $500 million dollar housing fund that WHEDA oversees and by pushing to allocate a portion of the state budget surplus to housing-related grants for low-income housing developers and providers.
What's the most important issue facing the state at large?
Isaia Ben-Ami: For the past 15 years, Republican budgets have divested from our education, our healthcare, and our environment. We need to reshape our budget to prioritize the needs of people. That means reinvesting in the Knowles Nelson Stewardship Fund, increasing our special education reimbursement rate to be sum sufficient, and creating a Badgercare public option.
Tony Castañeda: The same as what is affecting the 76th District. Affordability and reversing the long standing attack on our public commons by Republicans over the last 40 years. We have to build our public school system (K-12, Technical Schools and the UW) back to full strength and effectiveness.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: From rising costs to continued attacks on our democracy, so many of the crises we face are the result of a government that answers to billionaires instead of working people. Our politicians shouldn’t be bought by big corporations and wealthy donors. I’m running because we need a government that is accountable and responsive to the needs of the people. This year, we have an opportunity to elect a new legislature and pass bold, progressive policies that will actually make our lives better. That’s what I’ve fought for as an alder in Madison, and I’ll bring that same fight to the State Capitol.
Juliana Bennett: Every Democrat should agree that we must undo Act 10 on Day 1. I am ready to fight for what’s next after we restore prevailing wage, repeal right-to-work, and other anti-labor laws packed into Act 10. Then we will be back in 2011 Wisconsin. We need legislation that reflects the labor needs of 2026 and beyond. An organized workforce is essential to realizing our vision of a Wisconsin where everyone has a home, healthcare, a good job, and good schools. Additionally, we must make Healthcare accessible to all by expanding BadgerCare and FMLA services and eligibility.
Zoe Sullivan: The cap is coming off the school voucher program this year, which could create a massive drain on state funding for public schools by siphoning it away to private and charter schools. Such an impact would not only damage state finances but also homeowners across the state who have been repeatedly asked to subsidize for-profit education by making up the difference left in their local school district's budget.
What sets you apart from your competitors?
Isaia Ben-Ami: Experience. We need representation that is ready to hit the ground running, and I have a proven record of working in legislative offices, crafting legislation, and a commitment to growing progressive power in the legislature. I have worked both inside and outside Democratic leadership, and I know the work it takes to turn a platform into policy. This next legislative session, where we have an opportunity to win a Democratic majority, Madison is going to need active representation that is ready to fight for everything we have been neglected over the last 15 years.
Tony Castañeda: My long term commitment to and involvement in this community. I have lived, worked and raised my family in the 76th District. I have been doing the things my opponents say they want to do.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: I don’t have the typical background of someone who runs for the Assembly. I’ve experienced homelessness, gone without healthcare, and made $2.33 an hour in the food service industry. And as a transgender woman, I know what it feels like to see your basic rights and freedoms come under attack. That perspective is missing from the legislature. I’ve lived the policy failures of our state government. That’s something no degree or consultant can teach you. I carry those experiences with me, and they guide every decision I make as an elected official. This fight isn’t political for me. It’s personal.
Juliana Bennett: There are three things that set me apart from my fellow candidates: 1. I am the only candidate with experience in all levels of government: as Madison Alder, as the Federal Legislative Liaison for WHEDA, and as the Chief of Staff to State Representative Angelito Tenorio. 2. I’m running on the 17 cent Millionaire Tax. This bill meets one of the most pressing needs of this district, to lower property taxes and fund our schools by supplementing school aid with funds from higher income earners. 3. I’m endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers - Wisconsin, Madison Area DSA, and national DSA.
Zoe Sullivan: I bring a systems lens to my analysis and so think about how different pieces of an issue connect to other areas. One example of this is recognizing that part of the traffic problem on East Washington Avenue could be solved through a robust regional transit system that would reduce the need for cars.
Would you support a moratorium on hyperscale data centers in Wisconsin? Why or why not?
Isaia Ben-Ami: Yes. We cannot allow any infrastructure to be built that poses a danger to our water, our planet, or our people. We need to ensure that our ratepayers are protected from spikes in utility rates, and we need to know that our water will not be jeopardized for a private entity's profit. In addition, we need to dramatically grow our green energy infrastructure to ensure that the immense power needs of these data centers will not generate carbon emissions that are dangerous to our planet.
Tony Castañeda: Definitely. The proliferation of data centers in Wisconsin and around the country especially in the midwest is getting out of hand. During this 5 year moratorium we should be using all resources from our UW System to really study and research the impact data centers have on our environment, water supply and rates.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: I am the only candidate in this race who has actually passed a moratorium on data centers. As an alder in Madison, I was proud to sponsor our first-in-the-state moratorium on large-scale data centers. In the Assembly, I’ll do the same at the state level. We need strict guardrails to limit the energy and water consumption of data centers and ensure they do not raise our utility bills or cause irreparable damage to our communities. I’ll fight for local control and real community input so that municipalities can protect their residents. Wisconsin’s future should not be up for sale to Big Tech.
Juliana Bennett: We must put a moratorium on hyperscale data centers until we pass serious legislative regulations to safeguard against its large ecological impact at Wisconsinites’ expense. Data center owners must be held accountable and charged for the degradation of water quality, burden on the electrical grid, and other negative impacts they cause on their surrounding communities and environment. We must end the tax exemptions and non-disclosure agreements (NDA) so that communities can not be sold off by secret deals. Instead, these funds and jobs should be moved towards affordable housing development.
Zoe Sullivan: Yes, I not only support a moratorium on hyperscale data centers, but I would work to repeal the tax credit the legislature passed in 2023 subsidizing these projects.
What's something the state government currently isn't doing, but could do, to help ease Madison's housing crisis?
Isaia Ben-Ami: Increase incentives to build dense housing, and decrease regulations that make building dense housing expensive. We can invest in condos, duplexes, and co-ops to allow more people to live in our wonderful city. In addition, we can change our building code to allow for single-stairway buildings to be built. These are not flashy policies, but they will grow our housing stock in a way that will help a growing city like ours.
Tony Castañeda: Stop private equity / outside hedge funds to buy up available housing stock. Keep investment local. Build more rental housing.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: As an alder, I’ve secured over $60 million in affordable housing investments and reformed zoning codes so we can build more homes. But we can only do so much when the state ties our hands. In the Assembly, I will fight to pass a Tenant Bill of Rights, reduce property taxes so people aren’t priced out, expand tax credits and eligibility for affordable housing units, and restore local control by repealing the bans on rent stabilization and inclusionary zoning so that local governments can actually meet the needs of their residents. Housing is a right, and it’s time our state treats it as one.
Juliana Bennett: I’m very comfortable talking with people who disagree with me, something I did often as a federal legislative liaison and Chief of Staff to a progressive representative. So I’m ready to organize across the aisle to proactively protect and uplift working families and marginalized communities across the state.
Zoe Sullivan: The state could create a public bank, which could work with local financial institutions to provide low-interest financing to low-income housing developers. This would help facilitate new construction.
What's your philosophy when it comes to working across the political aisle with Republican colleagues?
Isaia Ben-Ami: I have worked with Republican officials as a staffer. We often did not see eye-to-eye, but we tried to find common ground where possible. Always start from where you can agree, and continue on from there. Those areas of agreement may be small, but if they exist there is hope for progress. I will never sacrifice my values, but it is the responsibility of any legislator to be at any table where a decision will be made that will impact your constituents.
Tony Castañeda: I believe and know that I can relate to just about anyone for the common good. If you develop legislation that benefits the common good you should be able to convince others of the benefits. I have friends that are Republicans and family members that are as well if you can believe Chicanos voting for Trump.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: I’m a coalition builder. On the Common Council, I am proud to have authored legislation that has received unanimous support from my colleagues. I’ve earned the trust of people who don’t always see eye to eye with me, because even if we disagree, they know that I always show up authentically and fight for the people I represent. We need a legislator who can get things done no matter what our government looks like in 2027. I’m ready to reach across the aisle, but in the face of fascism, we must stand strong in our values and defend the dignity of all people. We cannot negotiate on human rights.
Juliana Bennett: I’m very comfortable talking with people who disagree with me, something I did often as a federal legislative liaison and Chief of Staff to a progressive representative. So I’m ready to organize across the aisle to proactively protect and uplift working families and marginalized communities across the state.
Zoe Sullivan: I am very open to working across the aisle with people who are committed to the well-being of Wisconsinites and our state as a whole. I have experience finding ground with people from a broad range of backgrounds, and that is the attitude I would bring to the Assembly if elected.
What’s your favorite meal in Madison?
Isaia Ben-Ami: Argus Bar & Grille's "Ten Cent Tommy’s Chopped Cheese"
Tony Castañeda: So many but right now I've been frequenting AMA a lot for their delicious breakfasts.
Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford: When I moved to Madison, my very first job was at Monty’s Blue Plate Diner. I waited tables and got to know the people and community I would later represent as an alder. That’s where I realized that Madison is the first place in my life where I’ve felt like I actually belong. We have so many wonderful restaurants with fantastic food, but going to Monty's will always mean something special to me. And the Veggie Meatloaf of The Gods with that amazing cashew gravy always makes me happy!
Juliana Bennett: When I get paid out well in tips, I like to splurge on yellow curry chicken, sticky rice, and Thai Iced coffee at Ha Long Bay!
Zoe Sullivan: The coconut curry dish at Alchemy is my favorite meal in Madison.
