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Biography

Margaret Wood Hassan ( HASS-ən; née Margaret Coldwell Wood; born February 27, 1958) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator for New Hampshire since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Hassan was the 81st governor of New Hampshire, from 2013 to 2017. Born in Boston, Hassan graduated from Brown University and earned a J.D. from the Northeastern University School of Law. After graduating from law school in 1985, she worked at the law firm Palmer & Dodge. She later worked as associate general counsel for Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Hassan first ran for the New Hampshire Senate in 2002, losing to incumbent Russell Prescott. She ran again in 2004 and won. She served in the New Hampshire Senate from 2005 to 2010. She became the state senate majority leader in 2008 before losing reelection in a 2010 rematch with Prescott. Hassan ran for governor in 2012, defeating former state senator Jacalyn Cilley in the Democratic primary and Republican nominee Ovide M. Lamontagne in the general election. She was reelected in 2014. After becoming governor, Hassan was elected vice chair of the Democratic Governors Association and served as a superdelegate at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. In 2016, Hassan ran for the U.S. Senate and narrowly defeated Kelly Ayotte, the Republican incumbent, by about 1,000 votes, or 0.1%. She was reelected in 2022. She serves with Jeanne Shaheen, another former governor. Hassan, Shaheen, and Ayotte are the only women in U.S. history to be elected both governor and U.S. senator. Hassan is expected to become New Hampshire's senior senator and the dean of the state's congressional delegation upon Shaheen's retirement in 2027.

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