Mississippi Senate Race Separated by 43 Votes as Count Continues
Democrat Scott Colom holds a razor-thin lead over Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith with about 96 percent of the vote counted. Mississippi has no automatic recount.
Mississippi’s US Senate race is one of the closest in the country, with Democrat Scott Colom holding a lead of just 43 votes over Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith as counting continued on Wednesday.
The numbers
With about 96 percent of the expected vote counted, Colom had 462,821 votes and Hyde-Smith had 462,778, according to results reported by WXXV, NBC News and Fox News. Independent candidate Ty Pinkins had 19,935 votes.
No major news organization had called the race as of Wednesday morning.
No runoff, no automatic recount
Mississippi does not hold a runoff in this race, so the candidate with the most votes wins. The state also has no automatic recount law. A recount can happen only if a court orders one after an election contest, according to the reporting.
That makes the remaining ballots critical. Absentee and provisional ballots can still be counted through November 10.
Claims about outstanding ballots
The Colom campaign has said that more than 15,000 affidavit ballots remain to be reviewed. That figure has not been independently confirmed by state election officials, and it is not known how those ballots break between the candidates.
Affidavit ballots, Mississippi’s term for provisional ballots, are cast when a voter’s eligibility needs to be checked. Each must be reviewed by local officials before it is counted.
What a Colom win would mean
If Colom wins, he would be the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Mississippi since John Stennis in 1982. Democrats have already secured a Senate majority, so the seat would expand their margin rather than decide control.
Hyde-Smith, first appointed in 2018, won a special election that year and a full term in 2020. Her narrow position this year reflects the national swing against Republicans.
What to watch
Counties will continue to process absentee and affidavit ballots over the coming days. Both campaigns are expected to have observers and lawyers watching closely. Any legal challenge would come after the counties certify their results.
Until then, the race remains too close to call.
How we reported this
This report is based on information confirmed by the Associated Press or by at least two major news organizations, as noted in the text. Claims that have not been independently verified are identified as such. BURN VOC will update this story as new information is released.
