Kay Hagan

Kay Hagan
United States Senator from North Carolina
In office January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2015
Preceded by	Elizabeth Dole
Succeeded by	Thom Tillis
Member of the North Carolina Senate
In office January 27, 1999 – January 3, 2009
Preceded by	John Blust
Succeeded by	Don Vaughan
Constituency	32nd district (1999–2003) 27th district (2003–2009)
Personal details
Born	Janet Kay Ruthven (1953-05-26)May 26, 1953 Shelby, North Carolina, U.S.
Died	October 28, 2019(2019-10-28) (aged 66) Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S.
Resting place	First Presbyterian Church of Greensboro
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Charles T. Hagan III
Relatives	Lawton Chiles (uncle)
Education	Florida State University (BA) Wake Forest University (JD)
Kay Hagan's voice Hagan speaks in support of S.2237, the Small Business Jobs and Tax Relief Act Recorded July 12, 2012

Janet Kay Hagan^[1] (née Ruthven; May 26, 1953 – October 28, 2019) was an American lawyer, banking executive, and politician who served as a United States Senator from North Carolina from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the North Carolina Senate from 1999 to 2009.^[2] By defeating Republican Elizabeth Dole in the 2008 election, she became the first woman to defeat an incumbent woman in a U.S. Senate election. She ran for reelection in 2014 but lost to Republican Thom Tillis, Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, in a close race.^[3]

As of 2025, she was the last Democrat to represent North Carolina in the U.S Senate.