 In September 2010, Ayotte won a close victory over lawyer Ovide M. Lamontagne in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate.She then defeated Democratic congressman Paul Hodes in the general election with 60% of the vote and was sworn into the U.S. Senate as a member of the 112th Congress on January 3, 2011.Ayotte was mentioned as a possible running mate for Republican nominee Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.