Mississippi Hasn't Called It. History Is Waiting.
Scott Colom leads Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith as counties finish counting. If he wins, he would be Mississippi's first Black senator since 1881.
Mississippi Hasn't Called It. History Is Waiting.
By Latisha Sky | Prodigal Breaking News | prodigalbreakingnews.com
November 10, 2026
One week after Election Day, Mississippi's U.S. Senate race has not been called. Democrat Scott Colom leads Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith as counties process absentee and affidavit ballots, and counties must certify their results by Nov. 13. A Colom win would make him the state's first Black U.S. senator since Blanche K. Bruce, whose term ended in 1881. Hyde-Smith previously blocked his nomination to a federal judgeship.
[CONFIRMED] The race has not been called. Democrat Scott Colom leads Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi's U.S. Senate race as counties finish counting, according to local reporting. As of Monday, counties were still expecting 2,578 mail-in absentee ballots, Secretary of State Michael Watson said; to count, they must have been postmarked by Election Day and received within five business days. Tuesday, Nov. 10, was the deadline for voters to cure affidavit ballots. Counties must finish counting and certify by Nov. 13.
[CONFIRMED] Hinds County, home to Jackson, will rule on its provisional ballots Wednesday morning, CNN reports. Colom said the county's ballots will make his lead "insurmountable." Hyde-Smith said she remains "confident" she will win.
[CONFIRMED] Mississippi has no automatic recount law. A campaign must show evidence of discrepancies before seeking a recount through the courts, or ask the U.S. Senate to review the result, WLBT reports.
[CONFIRMED] What a win would mean. Colom would be Mississippi's first Black U.S. senator since Blanche K. Bruce, whose term ended in 1881, and the first Democrat the state has elected to the Senate since 1982.
[CONFIRMED] The earlier fight. President Biden nominated Colom, then a district attorney, to a federal judgeship in Mississippi. Hyde-Smith blocked the nomination by withholding her "blue slip," the home-state senator's approval the Senate Judiciary Committee relies on, citing his position on transgender rights, theGrio reports.
[COMMENTARY] For 145 years, Mississippi, the state with the largest Black share of its population, has not sent a Black senator to Washington. That history is close enough to count. We are not calling this race, and neither should anyone else until every lawful ballot is counted.
Notice the pattern. Interrupt it.
— Latisha Sky, Prodigal Breaking News
Sources: WLBT, "Colom leads Hyde-Smith as ballot deadline arrives" (Nov. 10, 2026); WLBT, "Razor-thin U.S. Senate race, but Mississippi has no automatic recount law" (Nov. 9, 2026); CNN live coverage (Nov. 10, 2026); theGrio (Nov. 5, 2026); Mississippi Free Press.
Image: AI-generated illustration, not a photograph.
Ask Prodigal about this story
Got a question about what you just read? Ask, and get an answer drawn from this story.
5 free questions left today. Answers come only from this story and can be imperfect.
Want unlimited conversations? Try Prodigal AI