How bipartisan has Sen. Kay Hagan been?

From 1999 to 2008, the Greensboro Democrat was the primary sponsor of 143 bills. Of them, 63 had no cosponsors, 36 had only Democratic cosponsors and 44 had Republican cosponsors.

Overall, her 366 cosponsors included 286 Democrats and 80 Republicans, for about a four-to-one ratio. She became more bipartisan during her time in the legislature, however, going from about a nine-to-one ratio of D-to-R cosponsors in the 1999-2000 session to about two-to-one in the current session.

The most frequent GOP cosponsors were Sen. Fletcher Hartsell of Cabarrus County, who signed on to 14 bills; Sen. Stan Bingham of neighboring Davidson County, who signed on to 13; and Sen. Robert Shaw of Greensboro, who signed on to 10.

Sens. Hamilton Horton of Forsyth County and Richard Stevens of Wake County each cosponsored five bills; Sens. Virginia Foxx of Watauga County and John Garwood of Wilkes County, four; and Peter Brunstetter of Forsyth County and Senate Minority Leader Phil Berger of Rockingham County, three.

Sens. James Forrester, Jim Jacumin, Jerry Tillman, Austin Allran and Harry Brown cosponsored two apiece, while Sens. Don East, Andrew Brock, Eddie Goodall, Harris Blake, Kenneth Moore, Fred Smith and Tom Apodaca each cosponsored one.

Previously: Hagan's Republican cosponsors in 1999-2000, 2001-02, 2003-04, 2005-06 and 2007-08 sessions.

State Sen. Kay Hagan was hardly bipartisan in her first term.

With the Democratic Senate nominee touting her bipartisanship in the legislature, Dome has been taking a closer look at the number of Republicans who signed on to her bills.

In the 1999-2000 session, the Greensboro Democrat was the primary sponsor of 16 bills. Of them, six had no cosponsors, six had only Democratic cosponsors and four had Republican cosponsors.

Overall, her 59 cosponsors included 53 Democrats and six Republicans, or about a nine-to-one ratio. 

A bill to create "Kids First" license plates had three Republican cosponsors: Fletcher Hartsell, Robert G. Shaw and Kenneth Moore.

Shaw also cosponsored a bill to add a science building at UNC-Greensboro. Sen. John Garwood also cosponsored bills revising laws on wills and irrevocable trusts.