Amid her campaign for lieutenant governor, State Treasurer Fiona Ma has filed for divorce, according to San Francisco Superior Court records.
In a text message, Ma confirmed the split from Jason Hodge, a former firefighter, and described it as amicable.
“After 15 years, we have grown apart but remain good friends,” said Ma, 59. She filed the position Monday.
The couple have no children. Ma’s campaign website (opens in new tab) stated that she and Hodge “are the proud parents of three adopted rescues,” with a photo of three dogs.
Ma began her elected career as a member of San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors in the early 2000s, representing the Sunset. She later served in the state Assembly and on the Board of Equalization before winning statewide office as treasurer in 2018.
In 2021, Ma was sued by a former staffer, Judith Blackwell, who alleged sexual harassment, racial discrimination, and wrongful termination. Chief among the allegations were that Ma exposed herself and crawled into bed with Blackwell when they shared a hotel room while on a business trip. Ma denied the allegations, and a court dismissed some of the claims. Blackwell dropped the lawsuit in 2024. The state later reached a separate settlement (opens in new tab) with Blackwell for $350,000.
Ma is considered a front-runner in the race for lieutenant governor. If elected, she will be the first Asian American to hold the position.
Ma and Hodge, an elected member of the Oxnard Harbor Commission, met in 2010 and were married the following year, according to a Chronicle story (opens in new tab).
“He is a 6-foot-5 American Indian. She is a 5-foot-4 Chinese American,” Carolyne Zinko (opens in new tab) wrote. “He is a firefighter. She is a politician. He lives in Southern California. She spends most of the week in Sacramento. And they have not spent more than three days together during the 1 1/2 years they’ve dated except for one vacation shortly after they met.”
“We never argue, we agree on the same things, and we have the same passions — and passionate debates without attacks,” Hodge was quoted as saying.
Ma and Hodge were married at her home on Nov. 11, 2011, in a private ceremony officiated by California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton, who died in September.
It’s been a rough several months for Ma, who mourned her father’s death in October. (opens in new tab)
In her text to The Standard, Ma expressed excitement for her political prospects, in spite of the personal setbacks. “It’s my Fire Horse Year!” she wrote. “I was born in the year of the horse and won my first race in 2002 (year of the horse), state board of equalization (2014 another horse year), and this year is Fire Horse Year.”