Scott Colom makes history: Meet Mississippi's first Black senator in 150 years

Scott Colom is a 43-year-old lawyer and district attorney from Columbus, Mississippi. A seventh-generation Mississippian, he has spent much of his career working in the state's legal system before taking on Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in the November 3 midterm elections.

Colom was declared as the winner on November 11 after more than a week of counting outstanding ballots. He secured 49.2% of the vote against Hyde-Smith's 48.7%, a margin of roughly 4,600 votes. Hyde-Smith subsequently conceded.

Why is Scott Colom's victory historic for Mississippi?

Colom's win makes him Mississippi's first Black US senator since the Reconstruction era following the American Civil War. The state's last Black senator was Blanche K. Bruce, who was elected in 1874 and served from 1875 to 1881. The victory is also a political breakthrough for Democrats. Mississippi last elected a Democrat to the US Senate in 1982, when John Stennis won re-election. Colom has now ended a Republican hold on the seat that had lasted for decades.

The result is particularly striking because Donald Trump won Mississippi by approximately 23 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election and personally campaigned for Hyde-Smith shortly before voting.

What did Scott Colom do before entering the US Senate race?

Colom studied English and history at Millsaps College in Jackson, graduating in 2005, before earning a law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2009. He also spent a year teaching English in Guyana through the WorldTeach programme.

After returning to Mississippi, he worked with the Mississippi Center for Justice and later practised law. His career in public service included appointments as a justice court judge in Lowndes County, a municipal court judge in Aberdeen and a prosecutor in Columbus. In 2015, he defeated a long-serving incumbent to become district attorney for Mississippi's 16th Judicial District, taking office in January 2016. He was the first Black district attorney in the district's history.

What did Scott Colom achieve as a district attorney?

Colom's record includes prosecuting violent crimes, but his approach also involved rehabilitation and alternatives to incarceration for certain non-violent offenders. His office expanded pretrial diversion programmes that allow eligible first-time offenders to access rehabilitation, counselling and other services. He also supported restorative justice initiatives and worked on cases involving wrongful convictions.

Among the notable cases associated with his tenure was that of Eddie Lee Howard, whose murder conviction was overturned after concerns about the bite-mark evidence used against him. Howard had spent decades on death row.

Why did Cindy Hyde-Smith oppose Scott Colom's federal judgeship nomination?

Colom was nominated by then-President Joe Biden in November 2022 to serve as a federal judge for the Northern District of Mississippi. However, Hyde-Smith opposed his nomination, citing disagreements over his positions on transgender issues. The nomination was never confirmed by the Senate.

The episode added an unusual political dimension to their eventual Senate contest: the incumbent who had opposed his judicial appointment became the candidate he ultimately defeated.

What did Scott Colom promise voters during his Senate campaign?

Colom built his campaign around the cost of living, healthcare, jobs and rural hospitals. He criticised Hyde-Smith over her support for policies he argued would hurt ordinary Mississippians, particularly through cuts affecting healthcare and social programmes.

His campaign also highlighted rising grocery and fuel costs, wages and the need to protect rural medical facilities. He received support from prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Senator Raphael Warnock.

What happens next after Scott Colom's historic win?

Colom's victory gives Democrats another Senate seat as they prepare to take control of the chamber. He will represent a state that has traditionally voted Republican, making his ability to work across party lines an important test.

The result is more than a personal milestone. It signals a political opening in the Deep South and places a former local prosecutor at the centre of a changing national conversation about race, representation and the future of American politics.

(With inputs from ANI)