Scott Colom wins Mississippi Senate seat in historic upset

Democrat Scott Colom defeated Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi’s US Senate race, with networks calling the result on Wednesday, November 11, after more than a week of counting. The victory gives Democrats a seat flip in a traditionally Republican state and makes Colom the first Black senator elected from Mississippi since Reconstruction.

• Euronews reported that Colom led 49.2% to 48.7%, a margin of 4,585 votes, with about 99% counted.
• Hyde-Smith conceded in a video posted on X; DW reported that a spokesperson also confirmed she called Colom.
• The reported Senate balance stood at 55–44 for Democrats, with Alaska’s race still uncalled, Euronews and DW said.

A 4,585-vote margin after a week of counting

The Associated Press called the race after absentee and provisional ballots were counted, The Guardian reported. Euronews said CNN, NBC and CBS also called it on Wednesday, eight days after election night. Its account put Colom ahead by 4,585 votes, with about 99% of ballots counted; DW separately described his lead as more than 4,500 votes, or half a percentage point.

Colom, 43, is a district attorney, Euronews reported. His election marks the first time in more than 140 years that Mississippi has elected a Black senator. The state’s first Black senator was Hiram Revels, who served during Reconstruction after the Civil War, Euronews said. The Guardian, France 24 and DW also described Colom’s win as the state’s first since the Reconstruction era.

The result also ends a long gap between Democratic Senate victories in Mississippi. Euronews said Colom would be the state’s first Democratic senator in nearly 40 years; DW described him as the first new Democratic senator chosen there since 1947. DW reported that Donald Trump carried Mississippi by nearly 23 points in 2024 and that Hyde-Smith had consistently led in opinion polls, underscoring the scale of the upset.

What the result means for Senate control

Euronews and DW reported Democrats holding a 55–44 Senate advantage after the Mississippi flip, with Alaska’s race not yet called. Euronews said Democrats also won control of the House; DW reported a 254–168 Democratic advantage at that point, with 13 House races still undecided. Euronews counted Mississippi among eight Republican-held Senate seats Democrats flipped in the midterms.

The reports describe media projections and tabulated counts, not an official certified result. DW said Mississippi has no law mandating a recount for a close election. The retrieved reporting does not establish whether certification or a recount followed.