Democrat Scott Colom has defeated Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi’s closely fought Senate race. His victory makes him the first Black person from the state to serve in the US Senate since the Reconstruction era after the Civil War. The result came on Wednesday, November 11, following several days of vote counting.
The Associated Press declared Colom the winner after local election officials reviewed absentee and provisional ballots. These provisional ballots are known as affidavit ballots in Mississippi. The close race had remained undecided for more than a week after Election Day. Colom secured a narrow lead as officials completed more of the count.
Hyde-Smith, 67, accepted the result in a short video shared online. She said the outcome was not what her campaign had hoped for, but she respected the choice of Mississippi voters. She also congratulated Colom and wished him well as he prepared to represent the state. A spokesman said she had called Colom before the video was made public to concede the race.
Colom, 43, is a local prosecutor who built his campaign around the needs of Mississippi residents. He focused on the cost of living, the economy and the concerns of rural communities. He also argued that voters needed a senator who would listen to them and work to improve their daily lives.
His win marks a major change in a state where white conservatives have held political power for generations. Mississippi has the largest share of Black residents among US states. Yet Black political representation at the state and national levels has remained limited. Colom’s victory has renewed debate about the role of the South in the future of the Democratic Party.
The result also adds to the Democrats’ gains in the 2026 midterm elections. President Donald Trump’s party faced defeats in several states that have long supported Republicans. Democratic leaders say the results show that their party can compete in parts of the South that were once seen as difficult places to win.
Colom’s campaign drew support from voters who were unhappy with the economy and Hyde-Smith’s record. He also gained attention for his response to her comments about high beef prices. Hyde-Smith had suggested that consumers could choose other types of protein. Colom used the remark in a campaign advertisement, showing voters saying they would choose another senator instead.
Trump visited Corinth, Mississippi, in late October to campaign with Hyde-Smith. Colom took a different approach. He spoke with people waiting outside the rally and asked about their concerns. He criticized Trump’s policies, including tariffs and the war with Iran, which he said had placed pressure on farmers. But he avoided personal attacks on Trump and his supporters. Instead, he focused much of his criticism on Hyde-Smith and her record in Washington.
National Democrats welcomed the result. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Colom had run a campaign that changed what many people thought was possible for Democrats in the South. Former President Bill Clinton, who had campaigned with Colom, also congratulated him. Former Vice President Kamala Harris was among the national figures who supported his campaign.
Civil rights leaders also described the result as an important moment for Mississippi. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said voters had refused to be discouraged or counted out. He pointed to the state’s long history of struggles over voting rights and said the result showed the power of Black voters and public participation.
Colom also linked his campaign to that history. In his closing advertisement, he appeared at the Jackson home of Medgar Evers, the civil rights leader who was killed by a white supremacist in 1963. Colom spoke about Evers’ military service, his work to help Black residents register to vote and the long fight to bring his killer to justice.
The campaign also carried a personal link to Hyde-Smith. In 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Colom for a federal judgeship in northern Mississippi. Hyde-Smith used a Senate tradition to block the nomination. Colom said his campaign was not about revenge, but about giving Mississippi residents a voice.
Colom’s victory followed strong turnout in the Mississippi Delta and gains across much of the state. The result showed that the Republican advantage had weakened compared with the 2024 presidential election. Colom said he wants to serve people across Mississippi, not only those who voted for him.
He also spoke about the example he hopes to set for young people. His goal, he said, is to serve well enough that a young Black person who dreams of becoming a senator will not be told that the path is closed to them. His victory now gives Mississippi a new chapter in its long political history.
