Mississippi Democrats gain 55th Senate seat in historic upset

The Associated Press called the Mississippi Senate race for Democrat Scott Colom on Wednesday. His victory over Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith pushes the Democratic Party’s incoming Senate total to at least 55 seats. This marks the largest midterm gain for the party since 1986. The win ends a 44 year stretch in which Democrats failed to win the state’s Senate seats.

Hyde-Smith conceded in a two minute video posted to social media. She acknowledged the decision by voters and congratulated her opponent. Colom moved ahead late on election night. His lead grew as officials processed absentee and provisional ballots. The result makes him the first Black man to win a Mississippi Senate seat through a popular vote. Blanche K. Bruce, the state’s previous Black senator, was born into slavery and served until 1875.

Colom’s path to the Senate began with his work as a district attorney. He defeated a long serving incumbent in 2015 to become the first Black person to hold that office in Mississippi’s 16th circuit. During his tenure, he recorded a 94 percent conviction success rate. He is a seventh generation Mississippian. His father, a longtime Republican, campaigned for Ronald Reagan.

The campaign featured a sharp contrast in national support. Biden, Harris, Clinton, Booker, and Buttigieg all campaigned for Colom. Trump campaigned for Hyde-Smith. The race followed a previous dispute over Colom’s judicial nomination. Biden had nominated him for a federal judgeship in northern Mississippi. Hyde-Smith blocked a confirmation hearing despite support from both parties for the candidate.

Colom ran on a promise that Mississippi matters. He pledged to represent residents who supported both his opponent and the president. He attended a Trump rally in Corinth to discuss gasoline prices, grocery costs, and health insurance with attendees. His campaign team turned Hyde-Smith’s comments about beef prices into a viral advertisement. They then distributed free tacos from a truck to voters.

Counting procedures involved national voting organizations and local groups. Democratic and Republican organizations deployed hundreds of volunteers and attorneys across the state’s 82 counties. State law does not provide for an automatic recount. Any recount requires a court order following a lawsuit. Ballot challenges must proceed county by county.

Colom continued visiting colleges and local businesses while the count proceeded. The outcome reflects a national shift driven by anger at the current administration. Republicans lost in areas where Democrats had struggled to compete for decades. The result also follows presidential efforts to redraw Black majority districts. These moves aimed to weaken largely Democratic voting blocs in the South.