Trump heads to Mississippi for final midterms push

President Donald Trump begins his final week of campaign travel in Mississippi today. The stop comes as the state's U.S. Senate race draws intense national attention and spending. The state is deeply conservative, with a high share of Black voters and a rural, agriculture-based economy. Higher prices hit residents there with particular force.

Scott Colom, the Democratic nominee, challenges incumbent Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith. Colom serves as a district attorney. Hyde-Smith previously blocked Colom's nomination to a federal judgeship during the Biden administration. Polls suggest a competitive path for Democrats this cycle. This outlook combines elevated Black turnout with fewer Republican base voters.

Colom argues that the Democratic Party has historically overlooked the state. He notes that the party spent hundreds of millions of dollars in other states while spending almost nothing in Mississippi. He calls the state a betrayed cause rather than a lost one. He said the party has not been trying to win Mississippi and that voters should stop kidding themselves about that reality.

Celestine Rice attended a rally in Columbus on Thursday night. She paused the pre-speech music to share her views with reporters. Rice said the moral compass of the country is gone. She added that people are realizing big money does not trickle down as promised. She described the current situation as obvious and bad.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris headlined the Columbus rally. Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock and former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg also spoke. This presence signals a national strategy focused on the state. Republicans have responded by highlighting this national investment. They argue it proves Colom is too extreme for Mississippi.

Hyde-Smith’s campaign ran ads labeling Colom the most radical Senate candidate in a lifetime. The ads stated he was beholden to the far left. Democrats have spent even more money in recent weeks. Their message is that there is no daylight between the president and downballot Republicans. Colom believes voters agree with this assessment.

Colom said it is hard to beat someone doing a good job. He noted that if Hyde-Smith were focused on voters, the race would be tough. He argued that leaders are trying to take power from voters. He said voters should pick leaders, not the other way around.

The race carries weight beyond the Senate. It serves as a proxy for debates on Black voter power in the South. Several states redrew congressional maps after a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year. Colom, who is Black, said the trend could reach school boards and judicial elections. He believes this shift gives more power to leaders rather than voters.

History presents a challenge for Democrats in the state. The last Democratic senator from Mississippi came in the early 1980s. The last successful Black statewide candidate won during Reconstruction. In 2018, Hyde-Smith won a special election by roughly seven points. Ashley Kennedy Shelton runs a nonpartisan civic engagement group in Louisiana.

Shelton said she hears from people of all stripes who are tired. She believes voters will show up at the ballot box because the current system has not been working for a long time. A surge in Black voter turnout in primaries and early voting contributes to the current political climate. Trump holds a rally in the northeast corner of Mississippi this week.