Mississippi could be the next state to join the blue wave of flipped congressional seats in the 2026 midterm elections as Democrat Scott Colom’s lead over Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith grew Wednesday night.
Colom, a district attorney who ran on affordability and decrying the cost of living during Trump’s latest term as president, was ahead of Hyde-Smith, an ally of President Donald Trump who has served in the seat for two terms, by just over 1,000 votes Wednesday morning.
The race — which was predicted to be closer than usual but still a win for Hyde-Smith in ruby red Mississippi — was still too close to call by the Associated Press at 9 a.m. Wednesday. Thousands of affidavit ballots will be counted and a winner may not be announced until next week, the state’s Secretary of State’s Office said.
Both Hyde-Smith and Colom have said they think the votes will go in their favor in media interviews since Tuesday night.
Democrat Scott Colom and Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith are in a razor thin race for U.S. Senate in Mississippi.
Colom’s overperformance was part of the broader blue wave across the U.S. on Tuesday night in a rebuke to President Donald Trump and the GOP. Democrats flipped U.S. Senate seats in several Republican stronghold states. In Texas, Democrat state Rep. James Talarico defeated Ken Paxton, the state’s Republican attorney general, to flip a U.S. Senate seat that has long been in Republican hands. Democrat Dr. Annie Andrews defeated in Republican Darline Graham, the sister of the late Sen. Lindsay Graham, in an upset in South Carolina.
Every county in Mississippi shifted to the left in the 2026 midterm elections compared to the 2024 presidential election, data from the Associated Press and New York Times show.
The ballots left to be counted will help determine who becomes the next U.S. Senator in the Magnolia State. The counties with votes still being counted include:
-
Hinds County, which includes the state capital of Jackson and is a Democrat stronghold
-
Rankin County, the suburbs of Jackson which is a Republican stronghold
-
Madison County, which includes the city of Madison and traditionally is more conservative but is favoring Colom by one point
-
Harrison County, which includes Gulfport and Biloxi and slightly favors Hyde-Smith by about four points with 93% of votes counted
-
Jackson County, which includes Ocean Springs and Pascagoula and favors Hyde-Smith
-
DeSoto County, which includes Southaven and favors Colom
