Former President Barack Obama has cut an ad for Mississippi Senate candidate Scott Colom, the latest sign of Democrats putting real effort behind boosting their candidate in the deep red state as they eye a potential upset next month.
The Colom campaign will run the 30-second spot on digital and radio statewide in Mississippi as part of a seven-figure media buy in Mississippi, according to details shared first with Semafor. In the ad, Obama tells voters: “Mississippi, it’s time for a change.”
“You need to send Scott Colom to the US Senate,” Obama continues in the ad. “Scott made his community safer, prosecuting violent crimes as a district attorney and fighting corruption.”
Colom is running against Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, a conservative GOP senator who blocked Colom’s nomination to a federal judgeship under then-President Joe Biden. Colom currently serves as a district attorney in Mississippi.
The race to defeat Hyde-Smith is not a must-win for Democrats to retake the Senate and Colom remains an underdog in deep red Mississippi. But national Democrats have been eying the race for months due to the state’s large Black population, and Obama’s ad is a clear effort to juice turnout.
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., will appear with Colom on Wednesday in Jackson and Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, and Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware have also previously campaigned with the Democratic candidate.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has also listed Mississippi as a target for Democrats.
Democrats tried to beat Hyde-Smith in the past and failed. She defeated former Democratic Rep. Mike Espy by 7 points in 2018 and a wider margin in a 2020 rematch. But most Senate Democrats think Colom, a young father, is a stronger candidate in a tough environment for Republicans.