Democrat Scott Colom has won the US Senate race in Mississippi, a shock result in a deeply conservative state that had elected Republicans to the seat since 1982. He becomes the first Black person from Mississippi elected to the Senate in more than 140 years.
Fewer than 5,000 votes out of nearly a million separated the candidates. According to published figures, Colom, 43, took 49.2% against 48.7% for Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith, with an independent winning 2.1%. Hyde-Smith conceded in a video, saying she respected the decision of Mississippi voters.
The win gives Democrats 55 seats in the 100-member Senate, with a close race in Alaska still to be called. President Donald Trump carried Mississippi by more than 22 points in 2024.
Colom, a local prosecutor, visited all 82 of the state's counties and nicknamed his opponent "Cindy High Prices" over her support for Trump's tariffs. Exit polls point to economic hardship, tariffs and the Iran war as the main drivers of the backlash against Republicans, who have lost control of both the House and the Senate in these midterms.