The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has committed $500,000 to a joint ad buy supporting challenger Scott Colom against Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi. The investment signals an expanding battleground in a state where Democrats have not won a Senate seat since 1982. With nonpartisan handicappers shifting the race to likely Republican, high-profile Democrats including Kamala Harris have stumped locally, while Donald Trump headlined a rally in Corinth to boost GOP turnout.
Democratic advertising support for Scott Colom
- ▪The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spent $500,000 on a joint television and digital ad buy in Mississippi with Democratic Senate candidate Scott Colom starting October 29, 2026.
- ▪The Democratic-aligned Senate Majority PAC reserved between $1.2 million and seven figures in advertising to support Scott Colom's Senate campaign in Mississippi.
- ▪The joint campaign ad features district attorney Scott Colom promoting his record and asserting that Republican incumbent Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith has forgotten Mississippi.
Republican campaign advertising and responses
- ▪The Republican-aligned Senate Leadership Fund reserved seven-figure ad spending in Mississippi to defend incumbent Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.
- ▪The campaign for Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith spent over $1.3 million on advertisements labeling Democratic opponent Scott Colom as the most radical Senate candidate.
- ▪Republican political operatives and campaign staff characterized the late Democratic spending in Mississippi as a last-ditch effort to revive Scott Colom's campaign.
High-profile Democrats campaigning for Scott Colom
- ▪Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock campaigned, helping raise over $500,000 for Scott Colom's campaign committee
- ▪Former President Barack Obama released a 30-second campaign advertisement endorsing Scott Colom in the Mississippi Senate race.
- ▪Former Vice President Kamala Harris, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and Senator Cory Booker visited Mississippi to stump for Democratic Senate candidate Scott Colom.
Black voter dynamics in Mississippi elections
- ▪Mississippi possesses the highest proportion of Black voters in the United States, comprising nearly 40 percent of the state electorate.
- ▪Political analysts note that to win statewide in Mississippi, Democratic candidate Scott Colom requires high Black voter turnout along with roughly 20 to 25 percent of white voters.
- ▪Mississippi has not elected a Black candidate to statewide office since the Reconstruction era ending in 1875.
Mississippi Senate election history
- ▪Mississippi has not elected a Democratic candidate to the United States Senate since 1982.
- ▪In the 2018 special election for the United States Senate in Mississippi, Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith defeated Democratic candidate Mike Espy by seven percentage points.
Absentee voting in Mississippi
- ▪Mississippi does not allow general early voting, restricting absentee voting to older adults and voters with qualifying excuses.
- ▪As of October 27, 2026, Mississippi voters had cast more than 56,000 absentee ballots for the midterm election, up from 22,221 in 2022.
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