Mississippi’s Unbelievable Blue Turn
One of Election Day’s most surprising results still isn’t final: the extraordinarily close Mississippi Senate race between Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democrat Scott Colom, who could become the state’s first Black senator since Reconstruction. As of Wednesday afternoon, the difference between the two candidates is under 100 votes, with Colom leading and over 95 […]
In a stunning turn of events on Election Day, Mississippi's Senate race has ignited national intrigue. Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith and Democrat Scott Colom are neck and neck, with a mere 28 votes separating them out of nearly a million ballots cast. As of Wednesday afternoon, Colom leads, a remarkable feat for a Democrat in Mississippi—a traditionally Republican stronghold.
The state, home to the highest proportion of Black residents in the nation at 37 percent, has a history of suppressing Black voting rights. This year, however, Black voter turnout has surged across the South, driven by outrage over the Supreme Court's gutting of the Voting Rights Act. The outcome remains uncertain, as thousands of provisional ballots—mostly from voters previously marked inactive or lacking ID—await final tallying.
The race's close margin and Colom's strong showing in a state that voted for Trump by 23 points in 2024 signal a potential shift in both Mississippi's political landscape and nationwide elections.
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