Mississippi Senate race hovers within 1,138 votes with no formal recount option

Democratic challenger Scott Colom leads incumbent Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith by 1,138 votes in the Mississippi Senate race, a margin so thin it would normally trigger automatic recounts in other states. However, Mississippi has no formal recount process, leaving candidates with limited options to contest the result. As of Wednesday morning, 96% of the expected vote had been counted. Colom received 464,926 votes, or 49% of the total. Hyde-Smith received 463,788 votes, or 48.9%. Independent candidate Ty Pinkins held 19,934 votes, or 2.1%.

The Secretary of State’s office confirmed that candidates cannot request a recount and that none can be automatically triggered. Instead, a candidate may perform a ballot box exam after the election is certified. If issues arise during that exam, the candidate can file a legal challenge. The office stated there is no definitive number of remaining ballots, though it is possible that mail and provisional ballots are still pending. In Mississippi, provisional ballots are called affidavit ballots and allow residents to vote if their address is not found in the poll book.

Colom’s campaign manager estimated on Tuesday night that approximately 15,000 provisional ballots remain to be counted. Secretary of State Michael Watson said on Wednesday afternoon that about 3,600 outstanding mail ballots could be received within the next five business days. Watson also noted an unknown number of affidavit ballots will be processed within the 10-day window counties have to certify results. Mail ballots must be postmarked by Election Day but can arrive up to five business days later, a deadline set for November 10, 2026. The state certification deadline is November 13.

The race has defied expectations in a state that voted for President Donald Trump with 61% of the vote in 2024. Hyde-Smith previously won the Senate seat in 2020 with 54% of the vote, two years after taking office by appointment in 2018. Mississippi has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1982. Colom, a district attorney for four counties along the state’s border with Alabama, would become Mississippi’s first Black U.S. senator since Reconstruction. He is also a former nominee for a U.S. district judgeship.

President Trump held a rally with Hyde-Smith last month to support the incumbent. Hyde-Smith described Colom as the most radical Senate candidate to run for Mississippi in recent memory. Colom responded at a press conference ahead of the rally by noting that many supporters could not attend due to the cost of gas.