Democrat Scott Colom projected to win Mississippi Senate race
The gist
Democrat Scott Colom was projected to defeat Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi's Senate race.
His win would make him Mississippi's first Black senator since Reconstruction.
How it unfolded
- Nov 3, 2026Mississippi's midterm election was held; Colom's watch party was at the Ice House in Jackson, Mississippi.
- Nov 6, 2026Colom said ballots tallied since Election Day leaned in his favor and criticized Hyde-Smith for not explaining her strategy; Hyde-Smith posted "We are not backing down" and "This election is not over."
- Nov 7, 2026The AP had not called the race; absentee and affidavit ballots were being examined across Mississippi's 82 counties before deadlines the following week.
Key terms
- Reconstruction
- The period after the American Civil War when the former Confederate states were reintegrated and slavery's aftermath addressed.
- affidavit ballots
- A ballot used to record a vote whose voter eligibility must be resolved before it counts.
- absentee
- A vote cast by mail by someone unable to attend their assigned polling station.
Source: Wikipedia