Hyde-Smith faces Colom in Mississippi Senate race amid $5 million ad spend

Democratic campaigns have spent approximately $5 million in Mississippi this month, outpacing the $3.2 million spent by Republicans. The influx of funds targets a U.S. Senate race that national polls suggest has become competitive, a shift driven by rising Democratic enthusiasm and projected increases in Black voter turnout. This spending surge follows a period where the state was largely ignored by national campaign strategists who focused on other conservative-heavy districts.

Mississippi holds the highest share of Black voters in the nation, standing at close to 40%. The state is rural and agriculture-heavy, placing it among the poorest in the country where higher consumer prices have a more acute impact on households. Despite these demographics, President Donald Trump won the state by 23 points in the 2024 general election. The region remains racially polarized, creating a structural hurdle for Democrats who lack sufficient support from white voters to secure a statewide victory.

The current contest pits Democratic nominee Scott Colom, a district attorney, against incumbent Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith. Colom accused the Democratic Party of historically neglecting the state in a recent interview. "The reality is, Mississippi has never been a lost cause, we've been a betrayed cause," Colom said. "They spent hundreds of millions of dollars in other states. They spent almost nothing in Mississippi." Hyde-Smith blocked Colom's nomination to a federal judgeship during the Biden administration, a fact the Republican campaign now emphasizes in its messaging.

On Thursday, former Vice President Kamala Harris joined Colom at a rally in his hometown, where roughly 1,000 attendees gathered in a high school gym. Harris characterized the current administration as the most callous, corrupt, and incompetent in her experience. "We're 12 days out from an election. And it's time to turn that anger into action," she told the crowd. Attendees cited concerns over the war in Iran, rising fuel costs, and dissatisfaction with the current presidency as primary motivators for their support.

Republican strategy has focused on portraying Colom as an extreme outsider. The Hyde-Smith campaign spent over $1.3 million on an advertisement labeled "Most Radical," which states that violent crime doubled during Colom's tenure as district attorney. Campaign manager Jake Monssen expressed confidence in Hyde-Smith's reelection in a statement, noting that she accepted Trump's offer to rally voters. "Mississippians deserve to hear directly from their President about the consequences of electing Democrats," Monssen said.

Trump and Hyde-Smith held a separate rally in Corinth on Monday to motivate the Republican base. Trump argued that voters should not assume the outcome is a foregone conclusion. "Sometimes when you think somebody's doing so well, nobody votes," Trump said. "And then bad things happen, Cindy. That's why I'm here, just get out and vote." Hyde-Smith framed the election as a choice between socialism and capitalism, urging supporters to prioritize voter turnout over endorsements.

The race is scheduled to be decided on November 3. The outcome will serve as a test for Black voting power in the South, a demographic whose influence has been targeted by new redistricting efforts following a Supreme Court ruling that rolled back parts of the Voting Rights Act. In Mississippi, Republicans have indicated an intent to redraw state legislative and judicial maps after the midterms. The last Democrat to win a Senate seat in Mississippi did so in the early 1980s, and the last successful Black statewide candidate emerged during Reconstruction.