Scott Colom, a 43-year-old Mississippi prosecutor who once had his nomination to the federal judiciary blocked by the very senator he has now defeated, is making history as Mississippi’s first Black U.S. senator since Reconstruction.
The Democrat defeated Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the November 3 election, with the Associated Press declaring him the winner on November 11 after additional ballots were counted. His victory marks the first time Mississippi has elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1982.
A seventh-generation Mississippian, Colom was raised in Columbus in a politically connected family. His father, Wilbur Colom, is an attorney and former judge appointed by President Ronald Reagan, while his mother is also an attorney. Colom earned his undergraduate degree from Millsaps College and his law degree from the University of Wisconsin before returning to Mississippi to pursue a legal career.
Colom began his career working on legal issues affecting underserved communities and later became a municipal judge and Columbus’s first Black city prosecutor. In 2015, he defeated a longtime incumbent to become district attorney for Mississippi’s 16th Judicial District, representing four counties. His work emphasized criminal justice reform, alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent offenders and accountability for serious crimes.
In 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Colom to serve as a federal district judge. Hyde-Smith blocked the nomination in 2023, citing concerns about his positions on certain social issues and financial support he had received from a political organization backed by billionaire George Soros. Three years later, Colom challenged Hyde-Smith for her Senate seat, campaigning on affordable living costs, rural healthcare, better wages and economic opportunities for Mississippi families.
The Readovia Lens
Scott Colom’s election represents both a personal political breakthrough and a significant chapter in Mississippi’s history. His path from local prosecutor to senator-elect illustrates how a candidate with deep community connections and a statewide campaign focused on everyday economic concerns can build support across traditional political divisions. His victory also places renewed attention on Mississippi’s history of Black political representation and the changes occurring within its electorate.
