One of the reddest states in America is now staring at a Senate race so close that every properly cast ballot could decide who represents Mississippi in Washington.
As of Thursday morning, Democrat Scott Colom held an unofficial 1,138-vote lead over Republican incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, 464,926 votes to 463,788. Independent Ty Pinkins had 19,934 votes.
The Associated Press had not called the contest, with an estimated 96% of the vote counted. Its published snapshot showed Colom at 49.0%, Hyde-Smith at 48.9% and Pinkins at 2.1%, underscoring how little separated the two leading candidates.
AP classified Mississippi alongside Alaska and Kansas as one of the major statewide contests still awaiting enough verified returns for a projection. Its results showed the remaining uncertainty was larger than Colom’s margin, making any victory claim premature while county officials continued processing lawful ballots.
In Mississippi — a state President Donald Trump carried by roughly 20 points just two years ago — the Republican Senate seat is separated by barely more than one-tenth of one percentage point.
The race is not over, and neither side should pretend otherwise.
Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson said Wednesday that roughly 3,600 absentee-by-mail ballots were still outstanding, along with an unknown number of affidavit ballots. Under state law, counties have until November 13 to submit certified results.
The rules are clear. According to the Mississippi Secretary of State, mail-in absentee ballots had to be postmarked by Election Day and must arrive at circuit clerks’ offices by November 10.
Voters who cast affidavit ballots because they lacked acceptable photo identification also have until November 10 to present valid ID. Counties then have until November 13 to certify their results to the state.
Mississippi runs elections from the bottom up, with county circuit clerks and election commissioners responsible for processing and verifying ballots. The state estimated Wednesday that roughly 3,600 mail ballots remained outstanding, while the number of affidavit ballots was still unknown.
Those deadlines do not create new votes after Election Day. They provide time to receive ballots already postmarked on time and to verify ballots cast under the state’s existing rules.
That means the public may see the margin move again as county officials verify ballots that were legally submitted under Mississippi’s established deadlines.
MISSISSIPPI SENATE RACE: OFFICIALS EXPLAIN WHY THE RESULT IS DELAYED!#Mississippi #USPolitics
Why is America still waiting for the final result of Mississippi's Senate election?
Election officials say thousands of outstanding ballots must be carefully verified before the… pic.twitter.com/3FQfB1R0XQ
— Unknown Territory (@Beingunknown05) November 5, 2026
This is exactly the kind of count that demands transparency, patience and zero shortcuts. Republicans should have observers watching every lawful step.
Democrats should be held to the same rules. Election officials should document the process clearly enough that Mississippi voters do not have to rely on rumors from partisan operatives online.
What makes the result so stunning is the state’s political history. Mississippi has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1982.
Hyde-Smith first entered the Senate by appointment in 2018 and then won elections that year and in 2020. Colom, a district attorney, would become the state’s first Black U.S. senator since Reconstruction if his lead survives certification.
The political stakes are enormous. Democrats have already secured control of the Senate following Tuesday’s midterm elections, but Mississippi could expand that majority and make it harder for Republicans to block the Left’s agenda during the final two years of Trump’s term.
Both campaigns understand how much can turn on a small batch of ballots. Colom’s allies are publicly mobilizing volunteers to help voters cure ballot issues — the legal process for correcting certain defects before the deadline.
Republicans cannot afford to treat a deep-red state as automatic. A Trump-sized presidential margin does not guarantee that every down-ballot Republican will win, and this race is the warning in flashing red lights.
That decentralized process takes time, especially when the margin is smaller than the number of outstanding ballots.
No winner should be declared until the lawful votes are counted and the required checks are complete. But the lesson is already unavoidable: Republicans came within a political heartbeat of losing a Senate seat almost nobody expected to be in danger.
Now the nation waits — and Mississippi officials must get this count exactly right.
This is a Guest Post from our friends over at 100 Percent Fed Up. View the original article here.
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[ H/T WLT Report ]
