Scott Colom 

Share

Latest news on Scott Colom, covering the Mississippi Senate race win over Cindy Hyde-Smith, Senate election results, Medicaid and health care, tariffs, his career as district attorney, Ty Pinkins and Mississippi politics.

Scott Colom is a Mississippi Democrat and prosecutor who won election to the US Senate in November 2026, defeating Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith. He built his profile as district attorney for Mississippi's 16th Circuit Court District, which covers Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay and Noxubee counties. His victory made him the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Mississippi since 1982.

The campaign centred on health care and the cost of living. Colom attacked Hyde-Smith over Medicaid cuts, the pressure on rural hospitals, tariffs and rising prices, while she and Republican allies portrayed him as too liberal for Mississippi. Independent candidate Ty Pinkins also stood, and outside groups from both parties spent heavily on advertising. The count was extremely tight, with late-counted ballots, including from Hinds County, widening his lead before Hyde-Smith conceded.

Colom grew up in Columbus, Mississippi, and studied at Millsaps College and the University of Wisconsin Law School before returning to the state as a lawyer. He became Lowndes County's first Black justice court judge in 2011 and later served as a city prosecutor. As district attorney he became a prominent voice on police accountability, releasing case files in the 2015 police shooting of Ricky Ball in Columbus and criticising the later decision to drop manslaughter charges against the officer.

Mississippi's last Black senators, Hiram Revels and Blanche Bruce, served during Reconstruction, which gives Colom's win its historic weight. His path to Washington also had a personal edge. President Biden nominated him to a federal court in northern Mississippi in 2022, but Hyde-Smith withheld her "blue slip" in 2023, which blocked the nomination. She cited his positions and political backing, claims his supporters disputed.

Key questions now include Colom's votes on health care, trade and judicial nominees, and how he represents a Republican-leaning state. Our NewsNow Scott Colom feed gathers the latest headlines on Colom, the Mississippi Senate race, Hyde-Smith, Medicaid, tariffs and his work as a district attorney from reliable sources, updated constantly.