Scott Colom’s Mississippi Senate bid tests Democratic Senate hopes
Democrats must gain four seats to win control, and Colom’s campaign is one of several in traditionally Republican states
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
FILE - Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
Photograph: Wral News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Scott Colom is the Democratic nominee challenging Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith in Mississippi’s U.S. Senate race.
- Democrats need to gain at least four Senate seats to win a majority, and Mississippi is one of several unexpected states in play.
- Colom would be Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction if elected, and the state’s first new Democratic senator since the 1940s.
- The Mississippi governor’s 2023 race was decided by 3 percentage points, a margin Colom hopes to replicate.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .
Trust
74/100
Craft
68/100
Hype
20/100
7 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Scott Colom, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Mississippi, is running against Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in a race that could influence control of the chamber. Democrats must gain at least four seats to secure a majority, and Mississippi is one of several states where the party is testing its reach beyond traditional battlegrounds.
Colom, currently a district attorney, would be Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction if elected. He would also be the state’s first new Democratic senator since the 1940s. The Mississippi governor’s 2023 race was decided by 3 percentage points, a margin Colom has cited as evidence that his campaign could be competitive.
Hyde-Smith, who was first appointed and then elected in 2018, is portraying Colom as too liberal for Mississippi. Colom has argued that her loyalty to former President Donald Trump and his policies have hurt Mississippi farmers, consumers and those needing health insurance. Mississippi requires a majority to win a statewide election, and minor candidates on the ballot could force a runoff if no one reaches that threshold.
What the coverage left out
No right-rated outlet ran this story at all. None of the centre-rated digests mentioned Colom’s historic potential as Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction, a detail included in both left-rated full reports. The digests also did not include direct quotes from Colom or other Democratic figures, such as Sen. Angela Alsobrooks.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 8 Aug 2026, 03:45, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
Mississippi Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Colom speaks during a voting rights town hall at the historic Farish Street Baptist Church in Jackson, Miss., Saturday, Aug. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Sarah Warnock)
Associated Press News — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
3 rated outlets
- The two left-rated reports printed in full, Associated Press News and WRAL News, led on Colom’s candidacy as a potential wildcard in the race for Senate control. Both reports quoted Colom directly, with Associated Press News including his statement, “We can win here, and we’re going to.” WRAL News also quoted Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, who campaigned with Colom and said, “They cannot afford their groceries. They cannot afford the cost of gas. They cannot afford housing.”
- Both reports highlighted Colom’s historic potential as Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction and the first new Democratic senator since the 1940s. They also noted the narrow margin in the 2023 governor’s race and Colom’s argument that Hyde-Smith’s alignment with Trump could mobilise voters against her. Neither report omitted the requirement for a majority to win the election or the possibility of a runoff.
Centre
4 rated outlets
- The four centre-rated digests, Connecticut Post, WSLS, Political Wire and SF Gate, all carried the Associated Press report’s framing of Mississippi as an unexpected battleground. Political Wire’s digest quoted the Associated Press directly: “The battle for control of the U.S. Senate isn’t supposed to run through Mississippi. Scott Colom is trying to convince people that it could.”
- The digests from Connecticut Post, WSLS and SF Gate all noted that Mississippi does not top the list of contested Senate races but is among several states that could become wildcards. None of the centre-rated digests omitted the fact that Democrats need four seats to win the majority, or that Colom’s campaign is part of a broader effort to expand the map. However, none of the digests included Colom’s historic potential as Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Read it at the source
7 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
3- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens SF Gate in a new tab)
- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens The Washington Post in a new tab)
The Washington Post — is The Washington Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens Associated Press News in a new tab)
Associated Press News — is Associated Press News biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
4- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens Connecticut Post in a new tab)
Connecticut Post
- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens Wral News in a new tab)
- Mississippi Senate race highlights shifting map as Democrats and Republicans battle for majority (opens WSLS in a new tab)
WSLS
- Senate Control May Hinge On Unexpected Battlegrounds (opens Political Wire in a new tab)
Political Wire — is Political Wire biased? Our profile of this outlet
Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
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