Democratic candidate Scott Colom leads Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith by 1,138 votes, a provisional result in a race where no Democrat has won a Mississippi Senate seat since 1982. His campaign widely aired an advertisement titled “Pick another protein,” based on Hyde-Smith’s statement urging consumers to choose other proteins while the average price of ground beef reached $6.79 per pound in September 2025, up from $5.55 in January. By focusing on affordability, wages, jobs, hospitals and the cost of living, Colom raised about $5 million, compared with a little more than $3 million for his incumbent opponent, and seven counties that Hyde-Smith carried in 2020 now favor him. If he confirms his lead once the remaining votes are counted, Colom would become Mississippi’s first Black senator since Blanche K. Bruce and its first Democratic senator since John Stennis in 1982.
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