Mississippi Senate race: Democrat Scott Colom defeats Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith

Democratic candidate Scott Colom beat Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi's US Senate race after a prolonged ballot-counting process, the Associated Press projected on Wednesday.

The narrow victory makes Colom, 43, the state's first Black US senator since post-Civil War Reconstruction and the first new Democratic senator chosen by Mississippi since 1947.

How Colom pulled ahead in Mississippi

During the campaign, Colom promised to represent all of Mississippi, a state where racial divisions have long defined its politics and society.

"It's got to be about having a party that represents rural America again, suburban America, urban America — a party that makes sure we actually deliver for voters in ways that make their lives better," he said.

The southern US state of Mississippi has been controlled mostly by white conservatives for generations. 

Democrats extend their Senate majority

The Mississippi victory gives the Democrats a 55-44 advantage in the 100-member ​Senate. The winner of the Senate race in Alaska remains to be determined. The Democrats also won control of the House of Representatives, having gained 41 seats so far and holding a 254-to-168 advantage, with 13 races yet to be called.

What will Democrats do with their midterm mandate?

Mississippi election officials have been counting ballots for over a week in a race so close that Colom led by only a few dozen votes at some points. The latest media-tabulated results showed him ahead by more than 4,500 votes, or 0.5 ​percentage points.

The outcome adds to a decisive midterm rebuke of President Donald Trump, whose Republican Party suffered defeats in several states, and it will bolster some Democrats' argument that their future runs through the US South.

Republican rival concedes after close count

Hyde-Smith, 67, posted a concession video on social media, and a spokesperson confirmed she had called Colom to concede.  Hyde-Smith was first elected in 2018 and consistently led in opinion polls in a state that ⁠Trump ​won by nearly 23 points in 2024. 

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The Democrats' Senate leader, Chuck Schumer, wrote on X, "Blue Mississippi is here."

Hyde-Smith had blocked Colom's nomination by former President Joe Biden to serve as a US District Court judge in northern Mississippi, citing his position on transgender issues. Mississippi's other US senator, Republican Roger Wicker, supported his nomination for the post.

Mississippi does not have a law mandating a recount for a close election.