Come January, Mississippi will have a Democrat and a Republican holding its Senate seats, a first in nearly four decades.
Scott Colom was declared the winner Wednesday evening and will serve alongside Republican Senator Roger Wicker. The Deep South has backed Republicans strongly for decades.
On Thursday, Wicker congratulated Colom on X and said he hoped to work together for Mississippi and the country. Colom answered in a similar spirit, vowing to help improve the state and to earn the trust voters gave him.
Calls for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to step aside are growing among Democrats, and they now come from across the party's ideological range.
The criticism grew on Tuesday as the balance of power in Washington prepares to shift. Schumer, 75, has led Senate Democrats for almost a decade, but he now faces a fight to keep his post when the new Congress convenes in January.
Critics are pushing for a new generation of leadership, even though Schumer recruited many of the candidates who helped the party perform strongly in the midterms.
Trump has dropped the WeatherTech founder as his pick for the FTC. The founder will instead take a manufacturing-focused envoy post, and Christopher Mufarrige, who previously ran the agency's consumer protection arm, will be put forward to join the agency.
Trump wants more Republicans confirmed before Democrats take over the Senate. Separately, the Senate Commerce Committee is weighing a different nominee on Tuesday, this one for the FCC.
Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin wants Tuesday's GOP leadership vote delayed so the conference can first review its midterm losses. Four other senators, including Rick Scott and Mike Lee, joined his request.
Senators David McCormick and Jim Banks did not sign but also want a pause. Thune, the current majority leader, is expected to seek another term, and no one has declared against him.
Unless the conference agrees to the delay, the vote happens Tuesday morning. Democrats won 54 Senate seats, and that could rise depending on races in Mississippi and Alaska.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, a progressive critic of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, is now weighing a challenge after growing calls urging him to run. Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan is also considering a bid.
At a Crooked Media event Saturday, Van Hollen said the caucus needs a real discussion, since no leader should get open-ended support before members know the party's direction.
More Democrats are now pushing for fresh Senate leadership, saying the party has moved left and needs a leader who reflects that.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer vows Democrats will stop President Trump from seating a conservative-leaning Supreme Court justice once they gain control.
He spoke two days after Democrats won a clear Senate majority in the midterms.
Justice Samuel Alito, 76, is in no hurry to step down, even though Democrats taking control of the Senate could make it a lot tougher for Trump to pick a successor.
He intends to stay on the bench through the end of the current term.
US Politics Daily@uspoliticsdaily
