Fact Sheet: Elizabeth Dole Vs. Kay Hagan in the North Carolina Senate Race

Current Voter Registration (as of 11/03/2008)

• 6,265,830
• Democratic: 2,865,662
• Republican: 2,002,601
• Libertarian: 3,607
• Unaffiliated: 1,393,960

2008 Candidates

• Incumbent: Elizabeth Dole (Republican) won her party's primary with 90 percent of the vote.
• Challenger: Kay Hagan (Democrat) won her party's primary with 60 percent of the vote.
• Voter turnout for the North Carolina primary was 37 percent.
• Other items on the North Carolina ballot: U.S. president, U.S. House of Representatives (13 seats), governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, and numerous state offices and judgeships.

Fundraising and Spending (Through 10/15/2008)

Elizabeth Dole

• Total Contributions: $15,545,897
• Money Spent: $12,987,605
• Cash on Hand: $2,803,307

Kay Hagan

• Total Contributions: $13,336,788
• Money Spent: $12,129,956
• Cash on Hand: $1,206,828

North Carolina Demographics

• Total Population: 9,061,032
• Female: 51%
• Male: 49%
• White 67%
• Black, or African-American 21%
• Hispanic, or Latino 7%
• American Indian 1%
• Asian 1.8%
• Two or more races 1.3%

*Total may not add up to 100 percent because of Census tracking methods

• Median Age: 36.8 years

2002 Senate Election

• Elizabeth Dole (R) 1,248,664 54%
• Erskine Bowles (D) 1,047,983 45%

Sources: North Carolina State Board of Elections, Federal Election Commission, U.S. Census Bureau, 2007 American Community Survey, The Almanac of American Politics

Three Things You Didn't Know about North Carolina Senate Elections

1. North Carolina did not ratify the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote, until 1971. The only state to wait longer was Mississippi, which didn't ratify until 1984. Elizabeth Dole was the first woman elected to represent North Carolina in the Senate.

2. In the 1970s, Kay Hagan served as an intern in the Senate, operating the elevator that carried senators to and from the chamber.

3. As of Nov. 3, 2008, 42 percent of registered voters had taken advantage of North Carolina's One-Stop absentee voting, which allows any North Carolina resident to vote early (between October 16 and November 1) at designated voting sites.

(Sources: North Carolina History Day, The News & Observer, North Carolina State Board of Elections)

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