On the streets of Mississippi’s capital city, jubilation and optimism were widespread after one of the most significant political upsets in American history.
On Fortification Street, delivery driver Chris Williams paused to share his thoughts outside a gas station.
“It’s a good day in Jackson,” Williams said.
On Wednesday, 43-year-old lawyer Scott Colom was officially declared the winnerof the state’s highly scrutinized U.S. Senate race. Not since Blanche K. Bruce, a man born into slavery, concluded his Reconstruction-Era term in 1881, has Mississippi ― a state with the nation’s highest percentage of Black residents ― seen a Black person hold a U.S. Senate seat.
In a majority-Black city that has felt long repressed in a deeply red state with the
nation’s highest percentage of Black residents, Colom's longshot victory filled many with joy.
Jackson State University students raised their hands and cheered “Go Scott!” as they walked to class, while city councilman Brian Grizzell said: “We have made history!”
Mississippi has long borne scars of racism and segregation, a crucible of the civil rights movement symbolizing what National Urban League president Marc Morial described as “the long, long history of oppression and white supremacy.”
The legacies of 14-year-old Emmett Till, of assassinated NAACP leader Medgar Evers, of voting rights advocate Fannie Lou Hamer and slain civil rights activists Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman and James Chaney course through Mississippi’s veins. Such events provoked a furious Nina Simone to unleash her emotions over the state’s injustices in what would become a pivotal protest anthem.
It was here that Colom, a seventh-generation Mississippian, bested Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in a win some said marked the dawning of a new Mississippi – and, with Keisha Lance Bottoms’ election as the first Black female governor of Georgia, and the nation – the potential for a new South.
“This is a proud moment for Mississippi and an opportunity for people across the country to see our state in a new light, not only for where we have been, but for who we are today and what we can become,” said Jackson Mayor John Horhn.
Horhn said the victory brought to mind people like Evers and Hamer, “who risked everything so that Black Mississippians could vote, lead and have a voice in shaping our future. Scott’s election is part of their legacy and an important step toward realizing the dreams they fought so hard to make possible.”
Democrats have now flipped eight Republican Senate seats in a midterm blue wave. Colom's win tipped their majority heading into 2027 at 55, with votes still being tallied in Alaska.
Colom, who flipped at least 18 counties that supported Republican President Donald Trump in 2024, had been projected to lose the race while campaigning on the economy, accountable leadership and expansion of rural opportunities.
Jackson businessman Zach Servis, a conservative leaning community activist and former mayoral candidate, praised Colom for reaching out to voters more effectively than his opponent.
“Scott Colom’s victory is a telling tale that Mississippians are tired of choosing rhetoric over results,” he said.
Grizzell called Colom “a fighter and protector” who understands the work that lies ahead.
“Scott understands that he stands on the shoulders of countless Mississippians who helped make this moment possible,” he said. “Now, it is our responsibility to uplift him, support him, and help him succeed.”
Others said Colom instilled hope rather than dismay, that maybe Mississippi wasn’t a place mothers feared their children would ultimately have to leave to escape hate and inequality and find a better life.
“He knows our communities, understands our challenges and believes in Mississippi’s promise,” Mayor Horhn said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Good day in Jackson': Mississippi reacts to Colom's historic Senate win
