3 candidates are on the ballot. Below is what each one says they stand for, what they have actually done in office or in public life, and the arguments published for and against them — each quoted from a named source rather than summarised by us.
3 candidates · ballot order · Cindy Hyde-Smith currently holds this seat
Medium confidenceMedium confidenceThe candidate's stated positions and basic record are documented, but coverage is thin — often little independent reporting, or criticism from only one side.What would raise it: More independent reporting, a documented voting record, or published criticism from a named opponent would raise this.
What they say they stand for
Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.
Agriculture policy, reflecting the sector's weight in Mississippi's economy.
Alignment with President Trump's agenda.
Opposition to transgender rights measures, which she cited in blocking a judicial nomination.
Conservative judicial appointments.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
U.S. Senator from Mississippi since April 2018, by appointment; won the November 2018 special election and a full term in 2020.
Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, 2012–2018; previously a state senator.
Serves on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee.
In 2023 refused to return a blue slip on Scott Colom's nomination to the federal district court, preventing the Judiciary Committee from considering it, citing his support for transgender rights and support his 2015 campaign received from a PAC funded by George Soros.
In November 2018 said of a supporter that 'if he invited me to a public hanging, I'd be on the front row,' drawing widespread criticism in a state with the most recorded lynchings of any between 1882 and 1968; she called the remark an exaggerated expression of regard and later apologised to anyone offended.
None of the bills she has sponsored since entering the Senate in 2018 have become law, according to the Center for Effective Lawmaking.
Won the March 10 2026 Republican primary with 80.8%, about 127,852 votes.
Raised over $900,000 in the second quarter, with nearly $1.5 million cash on hand.
Endorsed by President Trump, as in 2018 and 2020.
Arguments in favor
She carries President Trump's endorsement and won more than 80% of her own primary, with the state Republican leadership consolidated behind her.
— President Donald Trump's endorsement, and Magnolia Tribune reporting
Her seat on the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee is the right one for a state where agriculture is the dominant industry, and follows six years running the state's agriculture department.
— Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith's Senate office
She has used her prerogative as a home-state senator to keep judges she considers unsuitable off the federal bench, which supporters treat as delivering on conservative judicial appointments.
— Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith's stated reasons for blocking the Colom nomination, as reported by the Mississippi Free Press
Arguments against
She voted to cut health care for 140,000 Mississippians.
— Scott Colom, her Democratic opponent
She has advocated fixing a Medicare problem facing Mississippi hospitals after having voted to increase those same hospitals' financial risks.
— Mississippi Independent reporting
None of the bills she has sponsored in eight years in the Senate have become law.
— Center for Effective Lawmaking, as reported by Mississippi Today
What we couldn’t verify
Her stated 2026 campaign priorities; no detailed platform could be located beyond her committee work and general alignment with the administration.
Her response to the criticism about her legislative output.
Her position on Medicaid expansion in Mississippi, one of the states that has not expanded it.
Lowering costs for families and raising the federal minimum wage, which has stood at $7.25 for over 16 years.
Saving Mississippi hospitals and expanding health care access.
Lowering tariffs, which he says are driving up prices.
Bringing good jobs to Mississippi.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
District Attorney for Mississippi's 16th Circuit Court District since 2016; ten years in the role with a reported 94% conviction rate.
Nominated by President Biden to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi in October 2022; the nomination was blocked in 2023 when Sen. Hyde-Smith withheld her blue slip.
His nomination was supported by Sen. Roger Wicker and by former Republican governors Haley Barbour and Phil Bryant.
Wrote to Hyde-Smith stating he never requested the 2015 PAC donation from George Soros and did not know of it until a news outlet reported it.
Won the March 10 2026 Democratic primary with 72.9%, about 109,817 votes.
Endorsed by U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson and by labour organisations.
Arguments in favor
He has prosecuted crime in Mississippi for a decade with a 94% conviction rate, and his federal judicial nomination was backed by the state's senior Republican senator and two former Republican governors.
— Scott Colom for Senate campaign, and the record of the 2022–23 nomination
His platform addresses what he found on a statewide listening tour — rising costs, stagnant wages, a $7.25 minimum wage unchanged in 16 years, tariffs raising prices, and hospitals at risk of closing.
— Scott Colom for Senate campaign, as reported by WLOX
He has the backing of Mississippi's only Democratic member of Congress and of organised labour.
— U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson and Mississippi labour organisations
Arguments against
He is 'The Transgender Defender,' handpicked by Chuck Schumer, and too far left for Mississippi.
— Republican messaging against his candidacy, as reported by the Mississippi Free Press
His campaigns have been bankrolled by out-of-state billionaire George Soros — the funding that led to his judicial nomination being blocked.
— Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and Republican messaging
He is soft on crime, despite holding a prosecutor's office.
— Republican messaging against his candidacy, as reported by the Mississippi Free Press
What we couldn’t verify
The Soros claim is disputed: Colom says he never solicited the 2015 donation and learned of it from press reporting. No independent adjudication was located, and readers should weigh the claim and his response together.
His positions on abortion, immigration and foreign policy.
His campaign fundraising totals relative to the incumbent's.
Removing big money from politics, which he calls the reason government fails Mississippians.
A concrete list of procedural reforms he would demand on the first day of a new Congress.
Building an independent caucus in the Senate rather than joining either party.
Health care, jobs, education and veterans' issues — which he says party officials never asked him about.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
U.S. Army veteran; lawyer and author.
Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Mississippi in 2024, and for Secretary of State in 2023.
Entered the 2026 Democratic Senate primary, then left the Democratic Party.
Qualified for the November 3 2026 general election ballot as an independent.
Has not held elected office.
Arguments in favor
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
Arguments against
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
What we couldn’t verify
No coverage critical of him by name, from anyone opposing him, could be located — neither major-party campaign appears to have engaged him. Because arguments against him could not be sourced, arguments for him are also left empty so the two columns stay comparable; his platform is recorded above instead.
The specific content of his Day One procedural demands.
His positions on abortion, immigration and energy.
Positions and criticism are quoted from the named sources, not our assessments. This is built to help you start getting informed — confirm the official candidate list with your election authority before you vote.
Roster established from NBC News, CNN, the Mississippi Free Press, Mississippi Today and Ballotpedia, cross-checked. In the March 10 2026 primaries, Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith won renomination with 80.8% over Sarah Adlakha, and Scott Colom won the Democratic nomination with 72.9% over Priscilla Williams-Till — a cousin of Emmett Till — and Marine veteran Albert Littell. Ty Pinkins, who entered the Democratic primary, withdrew from it and qualified for the November ballot as an independent.
The defining fact of this race: in 2023 Hyde-Smith blocked Colom's nomination to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi by refusing to return a blue slip to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Colom had been nominated by President Biden in October 2022 and had the support of Mississippi's senior Republican senator, Roger Wicker, and of former Republican governors Haley Barbour and Phil Bryant.
This is one contest on a longer ballot
A Mississippi ballot also carries state legislative districts, county offices, judicial seats and often local questions — and which of them you vote on is decided by your street address, not your city or ZIP code.
Your ballot is determined by your election authority, not by us. Verify your registration, precinct, and sample ballot at Mississippi Secretary of State.