Mississippi’s unresolved U.S. Senate election has stirred hope among Black voters as Democrat Scott Colom awaits results that could make him the state’s first Black senator since Reconstruction. The local prosecutor’s challenge to Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith remained too early for The Associated Press to call, with election officials reviewing outstanding ballots across all 82 counties.
Colom, 43, received an enthusiastic reception Friday during a visit to Jackson’s Farish Street business district, where civil rights leaders once organized. At Marshall’s Music & Bookstore, owner Maati Jone Primm described his candidacy as a source of pride and possibility for young people. The store, which opened in the 1930s, is recognized as the country’s oldest Black-owned bookstore. The prospect of a Colom victory carries particular significance in a state where nearly 40% of residents are Black, while white politicians have held its highest representative offices for generations.
The remaining count involves absentee ballots and provisional ballots, known in Mississippi as affidavit ballots. Absentee ballots may be counted if they arrive by Tuesday, five business days after the election. Affidavit ballots are used when voters encounter problems involving registration records or identification. Those with identification issues have until Tuesday to resolve them in person at their local elections office. Counties must certify their complete results to the secretary of state by Friday.
Campaign lawyers and volunteers are observing the process as officials examine ballots ahead of those deadlines, with litigation a possibility. Mississippi law does not provide for a statewide recount, though campaigns can seek court orders to inspect ballots, generally on a county-by-county basis. Colom expressed confidence in local officials and urged patience, while saying ballots counted since the election had favored him.
Colom also questioned Hyde-Smith’s absence from public appearances and asked why she had not explained her route to victory. Hyde-Smith has not appeared publicly since election night, when she effectively claimed victory despite the narrow margin and outstanding ballots. In a Friday social media post, she pledged to continue the fight, saying her team was monitoring remaining ballots throughout Mississippi and working to protect the process.
Democrats have already secured Senate control, so Mississippi’s outcome will not determine which party holds power in the chamber. A Colom victory would nevertheless represent a major change within the state. White conservatives have dominated its Statehouse and congressional delegation for nearly 150 years, first largely as Democrats and, after the Civil Rights Movement, overwhelmingly as Republicans. Black residents have continued to lack proportional representation at those levels.
Initially considered an unlikely winner, Colom did not receive advertising support from Senate Democrats’ leading campaign organization until late October. Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, the first Democratic senator to campaign alongside him this year, said she encountered doubts among Mississippi voters after repeated defeats. The close contest had delivered a different message, she said: “They now know that their vote matters.”
Colom has emphasized representing all Mississippians, arguing that President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the war with Iran affect people across demographic groups. He has also acknowledged the historical importance of his candidacy. His final campaign advertisement was filmed at the Jackson home of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, who was killed in his driveway in 1963. Colom said the advertisement focused on the sacrifices made to secure voting rights, without asking viewers to vote for him.
