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CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A dozen years before running for governor in New Hampshire, Maggie Hassan got her start in public service at the invitation of then-Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, the woman she now hopes to serve alongside in the U.S. Senate.
A lawyer at the time, Hassan caught Shaheen's eye for her advocacy work on behalf of children with disabilities, including her son Ben. Now 27, Ben was born with cerebral palsy and cannot walk or speak. Hassan believed he and children like him should have the same access as any child to a good education — and she fought for it.
"I've seen Maggie over the years, and I know that she's tough, that when she sets her mind to doing something that she goes after it," said Shaheen, who appointed Hassan to a state commission on education funding.
Hassan's advocacy work prompted Democrats to encourage her to run for state Senate, winning a seat in 2004. Over three terms, she rose to majority leader and became a leading voice supporting same-sex marriage, universal kindergarten and New Hampshire's participation in a cap-and-trade program designed to reduce pollution.
She lost the seat during 2010's GOP wave but began a campaign for governor soon after, winning all of the state's 10 counties in 2012.
Now in her second, two-year term, Hassan's aiming higher: On Monday, she announced she'll challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte in what is likely to be one of country's most expensive and closely watched contests as the two parties vie for control of the Senate.
Hassan, 57, was born in Massachusetts and is the daughter of Robert Wood, an undersecretary in the Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Lyndon Johnson. She earned a degree from Brown University alongside her husband, Tom, and a law degree from Northeastern University.
The Hassans live with Ben in Newfields, and their daughter Meg, 22, works for Teach for America in New Orleans. Tom stepped down as principal of the prestigious Phillips Exeter Academy earlier this year, saying he wanted to focus more on Ben and his wife's political career. In the journey from parent advocate to U.S. Senate candidate, Hassan's home life has helped shape her political philosophy.
"I really began to realize it was families like ours, and advocates for those families and elected leaders, public servants, who really made change happen," Hassan said in an interview with The Associated Press. "As I began to realize that impact, it made sense to me when I was asked to run for a state Senate seat to do that so that I could bring that knowledge of what a difference we can make when we all come together to solve problems, when we do it in a bipartisan way, when we focus on how best to include everybody."
Colleagues see that philosophy come through, whether she's supporting same-sex marriage or fighting for Medicaid expansion.
"Perhaps it started as a very personal experience, but it really speaks very broadly to her level of tolerance and desire for everyone to lead their fullest life," said Terie Norelli, a former New Hampshire Democratic House speaker.
Hassan's tenure in Concord hasn't been without backlash. Hassan vetoed the Legislature's $11.3 billion budget in June largely over business tax cuts, prompting a monthslong stalemate that caused headaches for state agencies and delays in new funding for critical services. During her first term, Hassan lost big on her push to legalize casino gambling in New Hampshire as a new revenue source, and she's proposed a number of tax and fee increases that Republicans have repeatedly blocked.
Senate Republicans say Hassan is now claiming credit for work they did on the budget and Medicaid expansion.
"If Gov. Hassan goes to Washington as a senator, she's not going to have the New Hampshire Senate to rely on to do her work for her," Republican state Sen. Jeanie Forrester said Tuesday. "So who's going to tell her what to do?"
But in Hassan, Democrats see a candidate who's ready to face the fight coming her way in 2016.
"She works harder than anybody," Shaheen said.
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