Democrat Scott Colom is defying the odds, narrowly holding the lead against incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) for Mississippi’s U.S. Senate seat.
The district attorney for Mississippi’s 16th Judicial District is hoping to become the state’s first Black Senator in nearly 150 years.
He would follow in the footsteps of Blanche Bruce, who served in the Senate from 1875 to 1881, during and post-Reconstruction Era.
Colom would also be putting the Mississippi Democratic Party back into the Senate chambers.
John Stennis was Mississippi’s last Democratic Senator to go to Washington, D.C. He served for over 41 years and retired from the Senate in 1989.
But despite the historic stakes, Colom still has a fight ahead of him as votes continue to be counted across the Magnolia State.
And while thousands are optimistic about a potential change, Hyde-Smith seemingly believes she will keep her seat.
As votes were still being counted late Tuesday night, initially showing her in the lead, Hyde-Smith assured attendees at her watch party that she would “still be their Senator”.
However, around midnight Central Time, AP reported that Colom was then in the lead by just 28 votes. That margin rose to 65 votes by midday Wednesday.
As of Thursday morning, Colom holds a razor-thin lead of just 1,138 votes over Hyde-Smith, with 96% of the expected vote counted, according to the Associated Press.
When asked about the close race on Wednesday, Colom said he is “confident” that he will win.
“Where we are, where the ballots are, we’re gonna win,” Colom said while addressing his supporters. “This is our election. We’ve won it. The people have done it. They’ve decided to go in a new direction. I’m confident of that.”
When asked by a reporter about Hyde-Smith’s initial declaration of victory Tuesday night, Colom simply responded with three words.
“Bless her heart.”
In a statement on Wednesday afternoon, Hyde-Smith’s campaign said they are closely monitoring the remaining count.
“We remain confident that when every legally cast vote is fully and accurately counted, Mississippians will have reelected Cindy Hyde-Smith,” said campaign manager Jake Monssen.
Mississippi may not declare a winner for another week as election officials continue counting outstanding ballots. State law allows local election officials to receive and count absentee mail-in ballots through Nov. 10, provided voters postmarked them by Election Day.
Voters also have until the 10th to resolve issues with their affidavit ballots. These provisional votes come from people whose eligibility election workers cannot immediately verify at the polls, often because they lack an acceptable photo ID or do not appear on the voter rolls.
Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson said Wednesday afternoon that approximately 3,600 mail-in ballots remain outstanding. He added that there are an unknown number of affidavit ballots.
Counties must certify their election results by Nov. 13.
The state’s next senator will be the candidate who receives the most votes, even if that candidate does not receive more than 50 percent of the vote. There will be no automatic runoff.
Mississippi’s election handbook outlines procedures for candidates seeking to challenge election results in primary, general, and special elections. However, those rules specifically apply to contests involving “county or county district” offices.
State law also provides procedures for challenging state legislative races, but it does not outline a process for contesting the results of a general election for the U.S. Senate.
According to Watson, candidates can examine ballot materials after certification to look for irregularities. From there, they can pursue legal challenges. It would be up to a court to order a recount.
Meet Scott Colom: The Man Vying to be Mississippi’s First Black Senator Since the Reconstruction Era