Let the record show there were two “first” female secretaries of state in Wisconsin, one appointed and one elected, but yes, both were Badgers. The first woman to hold the office was Glenn Wise MA1919, a UW–Madison economics alum who worked as a university secretary, statistician, and teacher at Madison West High School. Known as “Mrs. Republican,” Wise earned her nickname through deep, hands-on political involvement. She served as the secretary of the National Federation of Republican Women, attended national conventions, worked on party platform committees, and actively encouraged women to participate in politics at every level. In 1955, Governor Walter J. Kohler Jr. appointed her secretary of state, making Wise not only the first woman in that role but the first to hold any statewide public office in Wisconsin. A generation later, another Badger reached the same office by election: Vel Phillips LLB’51. Phillips, a civil rights activist and attorney, had already made history as the first woman and first Black person elected to the Milwaukee Common Council. Elected secretary of state in 1978, Phillips served until 1983, was briefly acting governor, and remained the highest-ranking woman to win state office in the 20th century. Her legacy is honored with a statue at the Wisconsin State Capitol. Regardless of how they got there, both Wise and Phillips were left their stamps on Wisconsin politics. Photo by

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