Mississippi Senate race remains unresolved, with Democrat Scott Colom narrowly ahead of Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith as counting stretches into Thursday and two Senate seats nationwide still outstanding following Democrats’ sweep of Congress.
Mississippi Senate race narrows as count continues
Almost 24 hours after Democrats celebrated historic gains, ballots are still being tallied in Alaska and Mississippi. In Mississippi, a heavily Republican state, Colom leads Hyde-Smith by 1,138 votes with nearly 96% of ballots reported, according to state tallies. Colom’s recent vote gains have outpaced those of his opponent, though no new batches have been posted for several hours.
Mississippi does not have a statute that automatically triggers a recount in a race this close, election officials note.
Democrats have not captured a U.S. Senate seat in Mississippi since 1982, and Donald Trump won the state by 22 points in 2024. The state has not elected a Black senator since 1875.
Colom, a seventh-generation Mississippian, was elected in 2015 as the first Black district attorney for the 16th Circuit after unseating a nearly 30-year incumbent. He reported a 94% conviction rate as district attorney. His father, a Republican, campaigned for Ronald Reagan and was a friend of longtime Mississippi politician Thad Cochran.
Republicans trade blame after midterm setbacks
With Democrats posting sweeping midterm victories, prominent Republicans offered competing explanations for the losses.
- Donald Trump said the party underperformed because he was not on the ballot, despite urging supporters to act as if he were.
- JD Vance cited Trump’s ongoing war in Iran as the “obvious” factor in the GOP’s defeat.
- Some Republicans criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over leadership of the unpopular war in Iran, even as Trump publicly backed him. Representative Thomas Massie was among those raising concerns.
- Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called the results “close to an extinction-level event for Republicans,” arguing the party failed to focus ad spending on issues that would energize voters.
Exit polling by the Associated Press found voters ranked the cost of living and government corruption as their top concerns.
Global front pages capture Trump’s midterm setback
Newspaper covers around the world highlighted the scale of the U.S. results. One national daily led with “Trumped,” describing a dramatically altered political landscape after Republicans lost control of Congress. A late New York Post edition labeled the outcome a “historic romp for Democrats” under the headline “Blue Tsunami,” while Iran’s English-language Tehran Times declared “US hegemony crumbling; Iran will never surrender,” linking Republican losses to the U.S. war against Iran.
Pelosi seat: Chan concedes, congratulates Wiener
In California, Democrat Connie Chan conceded in the race to succeed Nancy Pelosi in the U.S. House and congratulated fellow Democrat Scott Wiener. The Associated Press has not formally called the contest, but Chan said there was no viable path to victory. Wiener, a state senator, is known for work on housing and LGBTQ+ rights.
Historic firsts headline state and local wins in Mississippi Senate race
Editors rushed out late editions as a series of milestones emerged: the election of the first Muslim senator, the first openly gay senator, and the first Black female governor in the United States. In Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms was hailed as “historic” by a leading Atlanta outlet, which also noted the country elected four Black governors.
Texas front pages emphasized a “wave of change” as Democrats notched major statewide wins, featuring Senator-elect James Talarico and Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa. In California, Spanish-language daily La Opinión ran “National punishment” above an image of a battered MAGA hat, reflecting reported shifts among Hispanic voters.
These developments followed sweeping midterm victories that reshaped control of Congress and statehouses nationwide.