Democrat Scott Colom wins Mississippi Senate seat, becoming first Black senator since Reconstruction

Democrat Scott Colom was declared the winner of the Mississippi U.S. Senate race after a count that lasted more than a week, according to the Associated Press. Colom defeated incumbent Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, increasing the Democratic caucus to 55 seats in the Senate.

Colom, who was previously considered an outside chance, gained support during the campaign, including from advertisements that highlighted rising beef prices, a concern for many voters in the state. In a February interview, Hyde-Smith said, "You know, you have so many proteins to choose from." The campaign’s ad featured a Southern-accented narrator asking, "Pick another protein?" and then suggesting a change in representation.

The victory marks the first time a Black man has held the Mississippi Senate seat since the Reconstruction era, when two Black Republicans were elected by the state legislature. The last Democrat to represent Mississippi in the Senate was John Stennis, who served from 1947 to 1989.

Civil-rights activist Flonzie Brown Wright told the Financial Times, "It just feels like our time has come." Colom’s win adds to recent Democratic gains in other Deep South states, including Senate victories in South Carolina and close races in Louisiana, Texas, Kansas and Iowa.

Hyde-Smith, who originally entered the Mississippi state Senate as a conservative Democrat before switching parties, had previously served in the U.S. Senate after a 2018 appointment and a 2020 election. After the final result, she issued a video statement saying she respected Mississippi voters’ decision and congratulated Colom.