How the Mississippi Senate Race Became a Nail-Biter

As Democrats are celebrating a historic blue wave, eyes are on the Senate race in deep-red Mississippi, where the Democratic candidate led the Republican incumbent by a razor-thin margin of 1,138 votes as of Wednesday evening.The Associated Press has not yet called the race because it is so close, with Democratic challenger Scott Colom ahead by about 0.1%—he has so far earned 49% of the vote compared to Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith’s 48.9%, with 96% of votes counted. It’s a stunning nail-biter of a race that, in the weeks leading up to Election Day, polls had suggested would likely be won by the Republican incumbent by a narrow margin.“I can’t recall the last time it’s been this close for a statewide Senate contest—or a statewide election in general,” says Aaron Hitefield, an assistant professor of political science at Mississippi State University. “It’s unprecedented for [Mississippi] to be this competitive for Democrats particularly, certainly in the last 40 years.”Political experts say it could take a few days before the outcome of the race becomes clear.If Colom, a district attorney, wins the race, it would be the first time that Mississippi voters have elected a Democ...