Democrat Scott Colom wins Mississippi Senate seat, flipping Republican hold
The gist
Democrat Scott Colom won Mississippi's Senate race, leading Cindy Hyde-Smith by 4,404 votes uncertified.
The win ends over 40 years without a Democratic senator in the state.
How it unfolded
- Oct 14, 2022Then-President Joe Biden nominated Colom to be a judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi.
- Apr 2023Hyde-Smith declined to back Colom's nomination, citing questions about his stance on transgender issues and other concerns, and refused to return a "blue slip," blocking Senate consideration.
- Sep 3, 2025Colom announced he was running as a Democrat against Hyde-Smith in the 2026 midterms.
Key terms
- blue slip
- A form the Senate Judiciary Committee uses to ask home-state senators their views on a judicial nominee, which can let one senator block the nomination.
- affidavit votes
- A ballot used to record a vote whose voter eligibility must be resolved before it counts.
- Reconstruction
- The period after the American Civil War when the former Confederate states were reintegrated and slavery's aftermath addressed.
Source: Wikipedia