Kumar Bahukhandi
Democrat Scott Colom, who defeated Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith to become Mississippi’s first Black US senator-elect since Reconstruction.(File Photo)
The Associated Press called the race on 11 November after late ballot counts widened Colom’s lead over Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith.
Key Highlights
- Democrat Scott Colom defeated Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in the 3 November midterm election.
- Colom led by just over 4,600 votes when AP called the race, with more than 960,000 votes counted.
- He will be Mississippi’s first Black US senator since Reconstruction.
- The result gives the Senate Democratic caucus at least 55 seats in the next Congress.
Washington: Democrat Scott Colom won Mississippi’s US Senate race, unseating Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in a contest that remained unresolved for more than a week after Election Day. The Associated Press called the race on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, after county updates that included provisional ballots increased Colom’s lead. He is set to become Mississippi’s first Black US senator since the Reconstruction era.
A 43-vote lead grew as counties reported their counts
Colom was ahead by just 43 votes after Mississippi’s final election-night update early on 4 November. His margin grew as counties completed their counts and reviewed provisional ballots. On Wednesday, Colom gained ground in all 12 county updates reported before AP called the race.
At the time of the call, Colom had 49.2 per cent of the vote to Hyde-Smith’s 48.7 per cent, a lead of just over 4,600 votes out of more than 960,000 counted. Those figures reflect the count at the time AP called the race.
A milestone for Mississippi and a Senate gain for Democrats
Colom’s election marks the first time since 1874 that Mississippi has elected a Black US senator. It also ends a long electoral drought for Democrats in the state, where the party last won a US Senate election in 1982.
The Mississippi result brought the Senate Democratic caucus to at least 55 seats in the next Congress. Republicans had secured 44 seats, with Alaska’s Senate race still undecided at the time of the Mississippi call.
