Midterms: Mississippi still uncalled as Republicans turn on each other
Two days after the midterms the Senate race in Mississippi remains uncalled, with the Democrat Scott Colom 1,138 votes ahead of Cindy Hyde-Smith on 96% of the expected vote; the state has no formal recount process and mail ballots postmarked by polling day count until 10 November. Ted Cruz called the result “a Watergate-level repudiation” and Ron DeSantis “close to an extinction-level event”, as the party’s 2028 hopefuls dissected the rout.
Mr Cruz said Republican voters “showed up and voted and rejected our candidates”: “Food is too high, gas is too high, diesel is too high, insurance is too high, life is too high.” JD Vance, in his statement blaming the war, told those “just pissed at the results” that “you should be”, and conceded to critics “you did tell us so”. CNBC’s voter poll found nearly nine in ten voters called the cost of living crucial or major, three in four rated the economy poor or not so good, and about two in three said Mr Trump’s policies had worsened conditions. The incoming Democratic majorities are already mapping oversight: Frank Pallone promises an “aggressive oversight agenda” on the president’s energy deals, Senate Democrats intend to pass a war powers resolution, and Senate Finance Democrats plan to probe JPMorgan’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. A Colom win would make him Mississippi’s first black senator since Reconstruction in a state Mr Trump carried with 61% in 2024; his campaign believes around 15,000 provisional ballots remain, a figure no other outlet gives.