Born in Madison, Wisconsin, Doris (also known as Dori) Hanson went to University of
Wisconsin–Madison. Governor Tony Earl appointed Hanson to be Secretary of the Wisconsin
Department of Administration. She was the first woman to hold this appointment. While Hanson
never formally came out, she was known in higher professional women's circles as a lesbian
who had a partner. When her partner, Ursula Schmidt, was killed in a car crash in 1993, the
obituary acknowledged their relationship. Hanson served in the Wisconsin State Assembly in
1993, 1995, and 1997.
