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GREENSBORO - Democrat Kay Hagan, often described as a "little-known" state senator by national media, defeated one of the lions of the Republican Party Tuesday night, unseating U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole.

Incomplete and unofficial returns showed Hagan winning a race she had originally declined to enter, but then turned into one of the most high-profile and hard- fought in the country.

"Does anyone have a new pair of shoes? Ruby red ones maybe," Hagan asked the audience shortly after taking the stage at her victory party in the Greensboro Coliseum. "Because guess what? I just gave away mine."

It was reference to a well-worn campaign line in which she pledged to give Dole a pair of ruby red slippers and send her home to her husband's native Kansas. The Democrat used the line repeatedly to tar Dole as a carpetbagger who spent little time in the state. Hagan will be the first U.S. senator to call Greensboro or anywhere in Guilford County home at the time they were elected to Congress.

The combination of Dole's long experience in Washington, her status as a political star and North Carolina's history of leaning Republican in national elections were thought to make her all but unbeatable by any Democrat. But Hagan was able to turn Dole's natural advantages as a Washington insider against the incumbent by tapping into voter frustration with the Bush administration.

At the same time, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama registered thousands of new voters and deployed a ground operation - the likes of which the state had never seen - which helped Hagan.

At a gathering in Salisbury, Dole congratulated Hagan on her win while expressing disappointment in the bitter tone of the race. Dole also asked supporters to pray for Hagan as she takes office.

She told the crowd it has been an honor to represent North Carolina and that she has "done my level best to make you proud."

Libertarian Christopher Cole, a contract postal worker from Huntersville, was also on the ballot but never mounted a credible challenge.

Hagan was not the first Democrat that national party leaders tried to recruit for a run against Dole. Outgoing Gov. Mike Easley, Congressman Brad Miller and Attorney General Roy Cooper were all prominently mentioned as possible choices, and all rejected a run at unseating Dole.

In October 2007, Hagan also initially rejected a run for the U.S. Senate, saying she was happy serving Greensboro in the state Senate. But something changed in very short order.

At the time, Hagan said she was exasperated by a Dole vote that blocked expansion of a children's health insurance program. News reports also focused on a recruitment push by U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, who led Democrats' efforts in the Senate. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and other outside groups poured millions of dollars into the N.C. Senate race.

Hagan was back in the campaign by Halloween of 2007.

She faced four primary opponents, the strongest of whom was Jim Neal, an investment adviser from Chapel Hill. Dole faced only token opposition in the primary and emerged as the favorite.

A Salisbury native, Dole is a former Cabinet official and presidential candidate who won raves for her role in husband Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign.

Dole and Hagan have clashed over a number of issues. However, the sharpest attacks focused on personality.

From the earliest days of the primary, Hagan claimed Dole was a creature of Washington, and targeted Dole's support for the Bush administration. She also frequently made reference to a ranking that pegged Dole as one of the 10 least effective senators.

Dole struck back by ripping Hagan as "a creation" of the national Democrats and as someone who has voted for tax increases in North Carolina.

In the closing days of the campaign, Dole hit Hagan with a series of ads over her attendance at a Boston fundraiser that was hosted by one of the founders of the Godless Americans PAC, a group that advocates purging religious references from public life. The event was organized by a separate fundraising group, but Dole used the event to suggest Hagan sympathized with a "Godless" agenda.

The ad garnered national attention and was recognized as one of the nastiest in the nation, particularly because of the importance many North Carolina voters put on religion and church attendance. It also offended Hagan, who is a Sunday school teacher and elder in Greensboro's First Presbyterian Church.

"(Dole) had actually been tightening the race in ... tracking polls, but much of her crossover support from Democrats fell apart in the days after she went on the air with that message," Tom Jensen of Public Policy Polling wrote in an e-mail Tuesday night.

Hagan made reference to the ads as she delivered her victory speech Tuesday.

"This campaign saw some tough personal attacks," Hagan said. "But throughout it all, what kept me going was the belief North Carolina cared more about issues."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com