After a heated and sometimes controversial race, State Sen. Kay Hagan has defeated incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Dole for the state’s U.S. Senate seat.

With all precincts reporting, Hagan was able to take nearly 53 percent of the vote to Dole's little more than 44 percent. Libertarian candidate Christopher Cole took 3 percent of the vote.

The win is a big one for Democrats as they expand their hold on the U.S. Senate.

Hagan addressed her supporters in the Greensboro Coliseum Complex Tuesday night, thanking them for their work propelling the little-known state senator into a formidable opponent for the Republican incumbent.

"What a difference a year makes. A little over a year ago -- the press, the pundits, other politicians --were all ready to write this race off and hand Elizabeth Dole the keys to her office for another six years," Hagan said to a round of applause and cheers. "But it's not her office."

Hagan promised state citizens that she would work hard to reach across the aisle and work for their interests.

"For the North Carolinians that didn't vote for me, I'm going to be working hard for your vote," Hagan said. "The ideas we need to create good paying jobs to turn our economy around won't have a party label."

But she said her election as North Carolina's junior senator is just the beginning of the fight to bring change to Washington.

During her concession speech in the Salisbury Depot, Sen. Elizabeth Dole thanked her staff for a "job well done."

"I can't tell you how proud I am of all of you," Dole said.

She also addressed the negative tone of the campaign trail, which gathered national attention after the Republican incumbent released negative ads questioning Hagan's Christian faith and ties to atheist political action committee Godless Americans. Dole refused to pull the ads and Hagan fired back with a defamation lawsuit.

"People from far-away places poured tens of millions of dollars in North Carolina, funding tough, unfair, negative ads against me," Dole said. "I responded forcefully."

But she told the crowd she "would never regret" fighting her hardest for North Carolina.

Despite the tough battle, Dole congratulated Hagan on her victory and urged her supporters to unite for the good of the state.

"Tonight is about coming together for common purpose and the best interests of North Carolina and her people," she said.

Hagan represented the 27th district of North Carolina in the General Assembly. Dole had been elected to Congress after beating out Erskine Bowles for the spot in 2002.