Democrat Scott Colom's lead grows in Mississippi Senate race as count continues
Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith is behind by 2,574 ballots, according to AP, as both campaigns send lawyers and Mississippi has no recount law.
Mississippi's US race between Democrat Scott Colom and Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith had not been called days after the vote, as counting continued. The Associated Press put Colom ahead by 2,574 ballots in early Saturday afternoon figures, with an estimated 97% of expected votes tallied. His margin has grown since Election Day.
Absentee ballots must be received and provisional ballots verified by a Nov. 10 deadline. Mississippi has no automatic recount and does not let candidates request one. Only a court can order a recount.
Both campaigns say they are confident and have sent lawyers to the state. Hyde-Smith's campaign says it believes thousands of votes remain in dozens of Republican . It also wrote to officials in all 82 counties, demanding that provisional ballots be kept apart from regular and absentee ballots.
Colom's campaign says those demands have no basis in Mississippi law. Elias Law Group is representing Colom. Secretary of State Michael Watson, a Republican, says his office does not know how many provisional ballots remain.
If Colom wins, he would be the first Black senator from Mississippi since Reconstruction.
- 2,574 ballotsColom's lead over Hyde-Smith, per AP, early Saturday afternoonMS NOW
- 97%share of expected votes counted, per AP estimateMS NOW
- 11,202provisional ballots processed, per Secretary of State Watson on FridayMS NOW
- up to 15,000provisional ballots estimated by Colom's campaignMS NOW
- closer to 30,000 votesAP's estimate of outstanding votes as of 4:45 p.m. ET FridayThe Seattle Times
Three sides of the story
6 news outlets reported this
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Liberal3 outlets
Colom's widening lead and voter-roll purge questions
MS NOW leads with Colom's widening lead and builds the report around provisional ballots. It links their number to Republican efforts to purge voter rolls, a point it attributes to voting rights advocates. It adds, citing a report by a Mississippi outlet, that Watson's office authorized unverified credit data for the purge, which sharply increased the number of voters wrongly marked inactive.
DeSoto County voter Rachel Madden tells MS NOW she was not in the system at the polls, and calls it "very suspicious." Colom says he blames Watson in part for how hard voting has been, and adds, "We're going to win." MS NOW also gives Watson's statement that the measures guard against noncitizens and dead people voting, and Hyde-Smith's campaign saying it believes thousands of votes remain from dozens of Republican counties.
NPR's headline says no one knows how many ballots are outstanding, and it describes Mississippi's election process as among the slowest and most decentralized in the US. The New York Times reports that Colom has kept his edge as more provisional and were reported.
Center1 outlet
Why the race is too early to call
The Seattle Times runs an Associated Press explainer asking why the race is still too early to call. It says nearly 2,500 votes separate the candidates and walks through how AP estimates outstanding ballots. That estimate was about 44,000 on Friday morning and closer to 30,000 by 4:45 p.m. ET, and it could change.
The piece describes Mississippi's setup: no central vote reporting system, 82 counties contacted directly, strict voter ID rules and absentee ballots due within five business days, or Nov. 10. It gives Watson's count of about 7,000 processed provisional ballots, about 80% accepted. It looks at two counties.
In Hinds, a Democratic stronghold, it says Colom has a roughly 47,000-vote lead. In Rankin, where Trump won 73% in 2024, AP estimates around 2,200 votes are outstanding. It notes that recounts happen only by court order.
- The Seattle Times: Why it’s still too early to call the US Senate race in Mississippi
Conservative2 outlets
Colom's growing lead and a potential legal battle
The Washington Examiner leads with Colom extending his lead to just over 1,800 ballots while the race stays uncalled. The lead started at fewer than 100 votes, it says. Mail-in ballots may arrive as late as five business days after Election Day, so the outlet expects the final call to wait for them.
It gives space to Hyde-Smith's posts on X, where she says she will represent Mississippi for the next six years and that officials need time to count "every lawful ballot." Colom's campaign manager says he is "confident" the lead will grow. The outlet reports her letter to all 82 counties demanding provisional ballots be separated, and Colom's lawyers calling the demands "unlawful and extraordinary measures."
It says the demands set up a potential legal battle and notes Marc Elias's firm is representing Colom. Just the News reports that the race is too close to call, per AP, with Colom ahead by about 2,500.
- Washington Examiner: Mississippi Democrat’s lead continues to widen as race remains uncalled
- Just the News: Mississippi Senate race still too close to call: AP
- Liberal outlets did not mentionHyde-Smith's campaign letter to all 82 counties demanding provisional ballots be separated from regular and absentee ballots Reported by Washington Examiner
- Centrist outlets did not mentionHyde-Smith's campaign letter to all 82 counties demanding provisional ballots be separated from regular and absentee ballots Reported by Washington Examiner
Which side made the stronger case?
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All sources: 7 articles from 6 outlets
Liberal (3)
- MS NOW: Democrat Scott Colom’s lead widens in Mississippi Senate race
- NPR: No one knows how many ballots are outstanding in Mississippi's Senate race
Center (1)
- The Seattle Times: Why it’s still too early to call the US Senate race in Mississippi
Conservative (3)
- Just the News: Mississippi Senate race still too close to call: AP
- Just the News: Mississippi Senate race still too close to call: AP
- Washington Examiner: Mississippi Democrat’s lead continues to widen as race remains uncalled
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