Delta Blue

Mississippi finished tallying ballots Wednesday, and Democrat Scott Colom unseated incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) by ~4,600 votes.

Colom will be Mississippi’s first Black senator since 1881, and his razor-thin win (49.2% to Hyde-Smith’s 48.7%) marks the eighth flipped-to-blue Senate seat this midterm cycle. Thousands of provisional ballots—filed when voter eligibility can’t be confirmed at the polls—slowed results (see some reasons for provisional ballots).

Colom and voting rights groups say Mississippi used faulty data to deactivate eligible voters; Magnolia State officials say the data only flagged voters for review.

Colom’s victory gives Democrats a 55-44 advantage in the Senate, with one race still uncalled and possibly staying that way. In Alaska, Democrat Mary Peltola holds a slim lead over incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan (R), but if neither candidate receives 50% of the vote, ballots will be re-tabulated using ranked-choice voting (let Dunder Mifflin explain that to you here).

ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE
Believers shouldn’t allow political outcomes to consume our thoughts, direct our emotions, or dull our hope. Governments will change, but our mission remains the same: love God and love others.

“Jesus answered, ‘The most important is “Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other command greater than these.’”
Mark 12:29-31 (CSB) (read full passage)