Pennsylvania has a turkey that needs to be served for supper.
Independent senator threatens to leave the Democratic Caucus if Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) succeed in ousting Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in becoming the Democratic leader.
Mush brain doofus, Jonathan Karl Fetterman, 57 should have been defeated in the 2022 Pennsylvania Democratic Senate Primary. The Democrats could have chosen Connor Lamb or Malcolm Kenyett, but they thought the phony populist Fetterman was the better choice.
The former lieutenant governor turned senior senator is serving with Republican Dave McCormick. Fetterman is the most hated Democrat (turned independent). The second would be Rep. Haley Stevens (I-MI), then Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and lastly Schumer.
Voting data compiled by GovTrack and cited by news outlets showed that Fetterman consistently ranked among the senators with the highest rates of missed roll call votes. During the 118th Congress, he missed 21.2% of votes—a period that included a six-week hospitalization for clinical depression in 2023—and he continued to lead or rank near the top in absences during the 119th Congress.
That means he is the most laziest member in the caucus.
Reports from NBC News and the Wall Street Journal noted that Fetterman frequently missed hearings and business meetings for the three Senate committees on which he sits, attending only one of 46 committee meetings during a stretch in early 2025 and relying on proxy voting.
Birds of a feather flock together.
Critics highlighted accounts from former staffers and advocacy groups alleging that he routinely bypassed Democratic caucus lunches, avoided town halls, and canceled scheduled meetings with constituents—including a group of paralyzed military veterans and officials from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Fetterman has repeatedly stated he would be the "last man standing" in his party to back Israel. On November 14, 2026, during an appearance on Fox News, he suggested he could leave the Democratic caucus if Senate Democrats elect Van Hollen—a prominent critic of Israeli military operations—as Senate Majority Leader.
Fetterman has frequently used sharp labels against those who disagree with his foreign policy. In November 2026, he publicly labeled his 2028 Democratic primary challenger "pro-Hamas" and called an anti-war activist from Code Pink "Team Hamas" during a hallway confrontation at the Capitol. He has also called fellow Democrats' negative views toward Israel "insane".
Conversely, Fetterman has publicly criticized fellow Democrats for using extreme labels against Republicans. During an October 2025 NewsNation town hall, he urged his party to "turn the temperature down" and stated he refuses to call political opponents "fascists" or "Nazis".
Fetterman's declared 2028 opponent is Ahmed Moor, a 42-year-old Palestinian-American writer, businessman, and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member living in Philadelphia.
Moor officially announced his candidacy on November 9, 2026, becoming the first Democrat to enter the 2028 Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race.
Moor will get the ground running by launching a listening tour and host town halls in areas where Fetterman showed low support.
President Donald J, Trump, McCormick, Sens. Katie Britt (R-AL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Tim Scott (R-SC), Eric Schmitt (R-MO) and John Thune (R-SD) have openly called for Fetterman to scatterbrain over to the Republican conference.
Fetterman continues to stay committed to the Democratic caucus for now.
Former Democratic lawmaker Mary Peltola is likely to win the U.S. senate race in Alaska. Her lead is closer to the threshold to starve off a rank choice run off election.
Her challenger, incumbent Republican senator Dan Sullivan is angry that another Dan Sullivan siphoned votes off him. Unaware, Republican Gerry (Gerald) Heikes is actually peeling votes away from him.
If she wins, it gives the Democrats a 56 seat majority and it basically denies Pennsylvania independent senator John Fetterman from gridlocking the agenda. However, we must put pressure on Senator-elects Adam Hamilton of Kansas, Annie Andrews of South Carolina, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, Scott Colom of Mississippi, James Talarico of Texas and Roy Cooper of North Carolina to not become a Fetterman.
Peltola also must face pressure to not become a Fetterman if she wins.
Peltola currently leads Sullivan by 3.7 percentage points, or just over 10,000 votes. With 96% of the expected vote in, NBC News’ Decision Desk now believes Peltola is likely to win this race, though we may need to wait until Wednesday, Nov. 18, to know the final result.
If no candidate receives over 50% of the vote, Alaska determines a winner using ranked choice voting, in which the lowest-ranked candidates are eliminated one by one and their votes are redistributed according to each voter’s ranked preferences. If a voter did not rank the remaining candidates, their ballots are considered “exhausted” and are excluded from the final vote count.
Wednesday is Alaska’s deadline for final mail absentee ballots to be received by election officials, one reason why this close race has lingered for so long. Alaska reports its votes unevenly, and NBC News expects to receive the remainder of these votes early next week.
Nov. 18 is also the day the state Division of Elections would run the ranked choice tabulation, if needed.
If Peltola receives over 50% of the vote, she will win the election without needing to go through the ranked choice tabulation process. She needs to win just 53.8% of the remaining ballots to clear this mark — a real possibility given her strength in recent vote reports. On Friday night, she received 58% of the newly reported votes.
Sullivan, the incumbent, has two separate paths to gain ground and win the election: making up the gap with first-choice rankings, or making up the gap via the ranked choice process. An NBC News Decision Desk analysis of the ballots already tabulated shows that the first route is highly improbable and that the second route is likely impossible.
The first route that Sullivan could use to come back would be passing Peltola in first-choice rankings. With approximately 12,000 votes outstanding, Sullivan would need to win around 92% of those in order to tie with Peltola. That would amount to about 46 points better than he has performed in the vote counted so far, and far above the percentage either candidate has achieved in any batch of ballots received up to this point. On Friday night, he received just 38% of newly reported votes.
The second route for Sullivan to retake the lead is through the ranked choice process, but an analysis of the ballots shows why this route is effectively closed to him.
See ya Danny.
There are currently 11,300 tallied ballots with first-choice votes for candidates other than Peltola and Sullivan. Those ballots may be redistributed in the ranked choice process. With 4% of the total vote outstanding, the number of ballots with first-choice votes for candidates other than Peltola and Sullivan could rise to around 12,000. For Sullivan to net 10,400 ballots out of a pool of 12,000 and close the gap with Peltola, he would need to win around 93% of redistributed votes.
However, even that steep figure is misleadingly optimistic for Sullivan because of what we already know about how people are ranking the candidates.
The Alaska Division of Elections posts a “Cast Vote Record” for the over-270,000 ballots currently tabulated. These records show exactly how each candidate is ranked on each ballot.
Our analysis of those ballots shows that Sullivan does gain some votes from the ranked choice process, receiving a large transfer of votes from voters who backed Republican Gerald Heikes, who is in third place. But the most important thing about these votes is that a large percentage of ballots from those who backed other candidates are “exhausted” in the ranked choice tabulation process.
Over 45% of voters who ranked Heikes, Dan J. Sullivan Jr. or a write-in candidate did not rank Peltola or Sen. Dan S. Sullivan as a later choice, which means that these ballots will play no role in the ranked choice tabulation.
This ballot exhaustion means that there are far fewer than 12,000 ballots available for Sullivan to make up the gap of about 10,000 votes between him and Peltola in the ranked choice process.
If current rates are maintained, only about 6,600 ballots will actually be redistributed to the top two finishers in the ranked choice tabulation. If Sullivan is more than 6,600 votes behind Peltola’s first-choice margin after all ballots have been counted, it is mathematically impossible for the Republican incumbent to catch up to Peltola in the ranked choice tabulation.
The NBC News Decision Desk will need to assess the remaining ballots as they are received to determine if our standards are met to officially project the race, or whether the outcome will be determined by the ranked choice process carried out by the Alaska Division of Elections.
Former reality television star and lawmaker turned Trump official tells the U.S. that airspace is safe. The former plumber, MMA fighter and lawmaker turned Trump official looks scoffed and puzzled.
The President of the United States and Vice President of the United States are lame ducks.
They have a respectively job approval of 27%.
On Friday, there were major outages on the internet. There were endless delays and cancellations at all U.S. airports. The U.S. government shut down the airspace on Friday.
Microsoft had a major disruption this week.
A river cruise ship got hit by a oil tanker in New Orleans. It caused numerous injuries and it barely made the news. The oil tanker hit the cruise ship around the the Cressent City Connection (US Highway 90 bridge). The bridge is structurally deficit and is at potential risk of a catastrophic collapse.
U.S. busiest airports
Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson International Airport
Los Angeles International Airport
Chicago O'Hare International Airport
New York John F. Kennedy International Airport
Washington, DC/Northern Virginia Dulles International Airport
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
Boston Logan International Airport
Southern Florida/Miami International Airport
The controversy surrounds a national ground order that occurred at peak traffic hours and stayed active for over five hours.
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin were shellshocked on Friday night.
The American public were caught off guard by the disruption.
I strongly believe the Iranian government may have hit the U.S. with a massive cyber attack after weeks of the president’s threats of attacking Iran. In early November, the U.S. conducted a series of strikes on Iran.
Iran vowed retaliation. There is no confirmation on any strike.
Israel also had a hand in this. The Israelis are notorious for espionage and sabotage.
While Israeli Mossad Director Roman Gofman was in Washington, D.C., on Friday, November 13, 2026, the exact day the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a nationwide ground stop, there is no verified evidence linking his visit to the aviation outage.
The Israelis have actively put spyware and doomware into our systems.
Jensen Huang was forced out of Nvidia after he was alleged to be engaging with a mistress who had ties to the Chinese government. He had admitted to numerous affairs with women.
Huang is one of the president's top donors and friends.
President Donald J. Trump of the 45th and 47th term, has became a lame duck for the remaining term. The incompetent Republicans led him to a generational wipeout.
The ineffective Democrats will now have two years of chaotic instigation with Trump.
Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer will continue to aid Israel and the status quo. They are facing massive backlash to their leadership.
They will likely do some dumb shit instead of doing what the people demanded.
We have another presidential election in two years and damn, none of the choices are good right now.
And no, there is no talk about Abdul El-Sayed or Scott Colom considering a presidential run. They are being heavily mentioned as potential candidates.
Trump administration officials said Friday that new technology being added to the nation’s air traffic control system overloaded antiquated parts of it and caused “intermittent” communications and radar gaps, leading to the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years.
It was lifted in the evening after a five-hour stretch when most flights were not allowed to take off from airports in the U.S.
Thousands of flights and potentially over a million travelers were affected. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin told reporters at the White House that no one was in any danger as more than 3,000 flights were safely landed. But Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said he could not guarantee it wouldn’t happen again.
Mullin said the FAA was installing “new equipment, new technology” and “it was overwhelming the older system.” There appeared to be no indication of a cyberattack, he said.
A limited number of domestic flights began departing late Friday after the ground stop was lifted, but it will likely take days for airlines to fully recover because so many planes and crews were out of position. Officials said they think the system will be back to normal in time to handle the Thanksgiving travel rush.
The nationwide ground stop was the first since January 2023, when another key FAA computer system that sends notices to pilots malfunctioned, and the second since the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Mullin says no sign of nefarious act
Asked whether he could rule out a cyberattack or rogue artificial intelligence incident, Mullin said there are no “footprints” showing an attack and that the problem appears to be “mechanically driven.” He said officials were still looking for the cause.
At least 827 flights had been diverted. By 7:05 p.m. EST, 670 flights were sent back to the airport from where they originally took off, while 157 were redirected to a different airport, according to Cirium, an aviation analytics company.
Duffy was defensive, blaming Congress for failing to approve more funding for new technology, while downplaying the fact that trying to implement new fixes overtaxed the system. He implored lawmakers to act.
“By doing nothing, you inject way more risk into the system,” he said.
Duffy said he expected flights around the country to be “back up and operational as we come into the heat of travel” next weekend ahead of Thanksgiving, but he also suggested more disruptions might occur.
“We didn’t think we would have this kind of outage. We did,” he said, while also noting, “We were able to review what went wrong, and then reboot the system and go. But, you will have more of these.”
Duffy said the problems were not linked to the FAA’s new AI-powered system the agency is rolling out to help predict problems in the sky because that isn’t connected to what failed on Friday.
“This is all the old legacy equipment. All of the new equipment that’s been deployed did not go down,” Duffy said.
The FAA has already replaced thousands of old copper wires with fiber optic lines and upgraded hundreds of radio systems as part of the overhaul that began last year after Congress approved $12.5 billion of funding. Duffy and the White House are pushing for $30 billion more to complete the work.
The U.S. most busiest airport is Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson.
The stoppage affected thousands of flights
Many flights ended up being diverted to places including Washington Dulles International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport and Nashville International Airport.
Some 11,000 flights carrying more than 1.5 million passengers had been scheduled to take off from airports in the U.S. after 4 p.m. EST.
At the time of the ground stoppage, more than 3,500 airplanes were in the sky, Duffy said.
At Chicago O’Hare Airport on Friday, travelers passing through security learned about the ground stop when they looked up at screens that showed flight delays across the board. Some called friends or family members, debating whether to stay the night in Chicago or find another way to their destinations.
Amber McQuilkin, 27, sat on a bench, disappointed that she might miss a trip with friends to New York for the League of Legends world finals.
“There’s not really any information being passed to me,” said the Seattle software engineer. “I contemplated just abandoning the flight and driving, but then the more I thought about it, the more I’m like, that would be miserable.”
Ruth Coles was still stuck on her plane five hours after it landed at the Los Angeles International Airport from Newark even after the ground stop was lifted. She said they were told they were waiting for a gate to open up.
“The pilot keeps saying they are telling him we are next in line,” Coles said, but that was several hours ago.
Sports teams stranded and cargo flights delayed
NBA, NHL and college teams were left stranded as they tried to reach their destinations. Meanwhile, NFL teams were left to wonder whether the issue would be resolved in time to travel to their games this weekend.
Duffy said NCAA teams will be prioritized ahead of football games on Saturday.
“I would encourage those football teams to reach out to the FAA, to schedule their flight times and make sure they can move” to make their kickoff, he said.
Cargo flights were also delayed by the ground stop.
FedEx, the world’s largest cargo airline, said it was prepared to activate contingency plans to keep any possible disruptions at a minimum.
U.S. airlines move about 61,000 tons (55,340 metric tonnes) of goods — from letters to packages — to and from more than 220 countries daily, according to the industry trade group Airlines for America.
Past problems have also been linked to equipment failures
The problem appeared similar to a regional air traffic control communication outage in September that snarled hundreds of flights across the Northeast, although that disruption was linked to a construction crew cutting a fiber optic line. Aging equipment was also blamed for the brief radar outages last year that disrupted Newark airport.
Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo said the difference this time is that it happened on a nationwide scale that left controllers unable to reliably talk to pilots.
“If you don’t have that ability, whether it’s because the old wires that they have are just run down or for whatever reason, you’ve got to stop airplanes on the ground and not put them in the air, where you’re going to risk not being able to communicate with them,” said Arroyo, a former United Airlines pilot.
Friday’s ground stop was also different than the one after 9/11 because planes were not being told to land immediately and pilots likely were able to communicate with ground controllers at airports, Arroyo said.
Outgoing controversial lawmaker joins fellow lawmaker in frustrations with the national Republican Party. Also he took aim at the Democrats who a scrambling for power.
Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) who ran for Texas Attorney General lost to Mayes Middleton.
Middleton eventually lost to Democratic opponent Nathan Johnson was not happy about his party being wiped out.
He basically said they fucking blew it.
He said that picking outgoing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as the Republican nominee for the Senate over a seasoned outgoing Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) falls directly on Sen. John Thune (R-SD) and President Donald J. Trump.
The so called member of the Freedom Caucus and Anti-Sharia Caucus said that the president’s push to redistrict states he won was a huge distraction.
In what could mark his final speech before the body, the Texas Republican accused his party of “trying to focus on political power” instead of acting in the best interests of their constituents.
“It pisses me off,” he said. “The arrogance of the powers that be, the masters of the universe who tell you that that’s what you have to do. And when you pursue political power over the people, you lose, and that’s what happened.”
Following the GOP’s losses last week, Roy has publicly aired his grievances with the direction his party took in these elections.
The same guy who enjoys people losing their health insurance, food subsidies and veterans benefits complaining about not focusing on the Americans is quite ironic.
He has the audacity to dial up the rage on his party when fully on board with the One Big Beautiful Act, the Iran War and the repealing of the Affordable Care Act.
Specifically, the Republican reupped his criticism of his party’s decision to back Paxton against Cornyn in the state’s GOP primary.
Paxton, who was ultimately defeated in the general election by James Talarico, faced a series of controversies related to his past conduct. He was impeached by the Texas House of Representatives for alleged inappropriate favors done for donors, then later acquitted by the state Senate.
“Somebody tell me why Republicans lost last Tuesday, I’ll say it’s because they were focused on themselves and the ruling class and not the people,” Cornyn said, after referencing Paxton’s campaign. “The founders gave us a system that does put the people first, and when politicians forget that, they rightly get sent home.”
The Paxton loss carried to Greg Abbott. The three term governor was defeated by Gina Hinojosa in a crushing defeat. His last elections were blowouts.
The Texas Republican also cautioned Democrats who are celebrating their wins in last week’s elections.
“The people right now are not in love with either party,” he said. “Democrats who right now think they’re all fired up that they’re on some sort of wave, no sir.”
He is right. The Democratic Party already having problems. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) couldn't muster eleven votes to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The members were at other venues. One of them, Rep. Haley Stevens (I-MI) went into hiding post elections after her infamous endorsement of losing candidate Mike Rogers over winner Abdul El-Sayed.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) is challenging Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) over his past controversies. Angie Nixon, the former Democratic senate candidate from Florida has called for a full removal of all Democrats tied to Israeli interests and corporate interests.
Roy is signaling that the Republican who remain in the House better get their priorities straight.
“Republicans who think they’ve got all the answers, ‘Oh, if we’d have just not done Iran, man, we were just sailing along.’ No,” Roy continued. “It’s the people who are tired of seeing corporate crony government interests steamroll their way of life, steamroll their community.”
Roy, who has urged Congress to stay in session until Jan. 3, called on his party to push forward its legislative priorities in their remaining time in power, including a congressional stock trading ban, border security and a reconciliation package.
“These are the things that people sent us here to do and more, again all designed to try to preserve and protect our great country, to actually secure it,” Roy said.
Former rapper is convicted of murdering a rapper. It was a murder for hire plot that involved a primary beef over music royalties.
Yella Beezy was convicted of murdering rival MO3. The 35 year old former rapper is now sentenced to LIFE in the iron college.
Known as Markies Conway, the former rapper was found guilty in the murder of Dallas rapper Melvin Noble, known as MO3.
Jury deliberations continued Wednesday morning in the murder trial of the man accused of plotting to kill MO3 in an alleged murder-for-hire scheme before reaching a verdict Wednesday afternoon.
After the verdict was read, Judge Chikya Anyiam handed down a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Conway asked to kiss his young son, who also left the room in tears.
NBC 5 witnessed several people crying in the courtroom and was told that Conway fell out in the back hall once he was officially taken into custody.
"We really can't express the disappointment at the verdict. We're going to keep fighting. We have excellent appellate points, and that'll be the next step in the fight," defense attorney Toby Shook said.
During the previous two weeks of testimony, witnesses described a chaotic scene of gunfire on a Dallas freeway as prosecutors began presenting their case against Yella Beezy, who is accused of orchestrating the 2020 killing of fellow Dallas rapper MO3 in an alleged murder-for-hire plot.
Conway pleaded not guilty to capital murder in connection with the death of MO3.
Prosecutors allege Conway hired Kewon White to kill Noble following a feud between the two rappers that dated back to 2017. White was convicted of capital murder in September and sentenced to life in prison.
"I remember getting the call that day when Melvin was on the highway, and, I can't thank everybody enough for the support. And I know the family is just, forever grateful for everybody's hard work, you know, tireless effort to get a just verdict," Dallas County Assistant District Attorney Tommy Adams said.
Justice for MO3's family.
Conway's case will go to automatic appeal.
Conway was arrested by Dallas County Texas in connection with felony capital murder-for-hire charges of rapper MO3 in the State of Texas vs. Conway, Markies (Case #F-25-00154).
A Dallas County grand jury would formally indict Conway on a murder charge which alleged that he hired a hitman to murder MO3, whose real name was Melvin Noble.
On September 4, 2026, a Dallas County jury found Kewon White, who was alleged to have been hired by Conway to carry out the murder of Noble, guilty of capital murder.
On November 11, 2026, Conway was found guilty of capital murder by a Dallas County jury in connection with the November 2020 killing of rapper MO3 (Melvin Noble). Prosecutors alleged that Conway hired Kewon White to carry out the killing, reportedly paying him $40,000.
Chris Van Hollen is an underdog. Dems might choose him over the polarizing Chuck Schumer.
It is official.
Yearly wrap up.
Friendly fire.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has officially challenged Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) for the Majority Leader position.
Schumer has a job approval of 17% nationally.
The 67 year old senator from Maryland is more inclined to take on the issues the Democratic Party demanded the party follow.
President Donald J. Trump gave his endorsement of Schumer.
Trump commented on the Senate Democratic leadership race, saying, “Chuck Schumer probably gets it. He is not a bad guy. I know him very well”.
That is the "kiss of death."
Trump wants Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) as the leaders. He can use them as scapegoats. After a series of controversial moves from the New York lawmakers, many Democrats feel that having Schumer as the Majority Leader and Jeffries as the House Speaker will only keep the status quo going.
Both are vehemently supportive of Israel. The Democratic Party is strongly and feverishly opposed to Israel, AIPAC and members who act like John Fetterman (or Haley Stevens).
Van Hollen stated that if we have to move forward, Chuck Schumer isn't ready for the challenge.
“In this election, the American people called for change. They called for a change from Donald Trump’s disastrous policies — but even bigger than that, a change from the status quo that isn’t working for working people,” Van Hollen said in a statement.
Van Hollen’s move follows attempts by grassroots progressives — and some newly elected Democratic senators — to draft him for the position as some seek an alternative to Schumer.
“It’s now on us to meet this moment, and to do that we need new leadership. This is not about any one person — it’s about answering the call of the American people. That is why I’m running for Senate Majority Leader,” he added.
Schumer, who has led the Senate Democratic caucus since 2017, remains favored to retain the position of Democratic leader. Still, it’s likely to be the most serious challenge he has gotten for the job.
Democratic senators will hold a vote in December to choose their leadership for the next Congress. That vote is held behind closed doors and requires a simple majority of the caucus.
Van Hollen said in an interview with MS NOW Thursday night that more than 10 senators have pledged to support him.
“We have a lot of people, but here’s the thing about an election like this: As you say, I’m the underdog,” Van Hollen said. “I told people I was thinking about it, and so now we are opening up the process, right?”
He added, “Now people will have to make a decision, one way or the other, and they have to decide whether they want to vote for change or whether they want to vote for the status quo.”
Van Hollen plans to run on having the new Democratic majority use every available tool to end the Iran war, starting with the upcoming government funding measure to avoid a December shutdown, according to his team. He’s also proposing to reverse President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” get money out of politics and tackle corruption.
Van Hollen is newer to Congress than Schumer, 75, but both men have served in Congress for decades. Van Hollen was first elected to the Senate in 2016. Before that, he served in the House for over a decade, beginning in 2003. Schumer was first elected to the House in 1980 and moved up to the Senate in 1999.
Freshman class. From left to right: Sherrod Brown, James Talarico, Josh Turek, Abdul El-Sayed, Roy Cooper, Chuck Schumer, Juliana Stratton, Chris Pappas, Annie Andrews, Troy Jackson, Peggy Flanagan and Adam Hamilton. Not pictured, Scott Colom.
Schumer responded on X to Van Hollen’s announcement, saying he has the votes to win.
“I welcome any discussion about the future of our caucus and the important work ahead. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together—55 seats and counting is an amazing result—and I have the votes to continue serving as Democratic Leader,” he said. “I look forward to leading our new Democratic majority and delivering for the American people.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said Wednesday that he would support Van Hollen if he decided to launch an official bid for the leadership role. The day prior, Sanders had said he would not back Schumer, saying at a press conference that “in my view, the time is now for change.”
Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI) endorsed Van Hollen for the role shortly after his announcement Thursday night, writing in a post on X, “I called on Sen. @ChrisVanHollen to lead our caucus as a candidate back in April because he leads with courage and experience.”
“We need both right now. Which is why I’m proud to stand with him in his bid to lead our Senate majority,” El-Sayed wrote, adding that to “earn our mandate,” Democrats “will require bold leadership.”
Still, Schumer has maintained support from longtime colleagues who point to his work as minority leader ahead of Democrats’ landslide midterm victories.
“Chuck Schumer is one of the principal architects of the most successful election in modern history, and I see no reason to change the leadership that helped make that success possible,” Sen. Angus King (I-ME), wrote in a statement on Thursday night. “Why would you fire the manager when you just won the World Series?”
King wrote that Schumer “outlined an aggressive plan for the new Democratic majority which is directly responsive to the message we heard from the voters, and he has the experience and unique mastery of the Senate process to make it happen.”
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) also urged Democrats not to turn their backs on Schumer earlier this week, saying that “no one has put in the time and effort that anyone has put into this cycle than he did.”
Gillibrand, who oversaw Senate Democrats’ campaign arm for the midterms, said Schumer ensured that resources were provided to help 100,000 new voters register in Mississippi, where Sen.-elect Scott Colom (D-MS) just captured a stunning victory.
“That takes vision. It takes clarity of thought. It takes strategic leadership, and that is what Sen. Schumer has done, and that’s why you will see, despite all the grumblings, enormous gratitude for the hard work he has done to get us to this position,” Gillibrand said.
Opposed to Schumer
Chris Van Hollen
Bernie Sanders
Abdul El-Sayed
Scott Colom
Annie Andrews
Peggy Flanagan
Elissa Slotkin
Troy Jackson
Adam Hamilton
Juliana Stratton
James Talarico
Chris Pappas
The pressure is on. We can do this. We don't need the timid leadership. We need to take on Trump and his minions. Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries are not ready for this.
Historically would be nice to have Black leadership. Hakeem always using his hands when explaining things is not what people want as a leader.
Republicans select the most ineffective House member to be Minority Leader. The man who kept quiet while former Ohio State University doctor Richard Strauss sexually abuse male wrestlers. The same guy who takes money from Robert Wexler, the alleged bundler for Jeffrey Epstein.
The same old guy notorious for show hearings, frequent appearance on Fox and endless gaslighting.
The lawmaker from Ohio's 4th Congressional District. A district that unfairly drawn to help him retain power for years. A district that carves into Columbus spanning towards Lima, Mansfield, Ashland, Sidney, Bellefontaine, Marysville, Powell, Wapakoneta, Marion, Westerville, St. Marys, Delaware and Kenton.
Introducing the ineffective idiot James Daniel Jordan.
Jordan has won over more establishment colleagues by raising substantial campaign funds and actively traveling to support fellow GOP candidates.
President Donald J. Trump gave this idiot his blessing. He beat out Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) for the top spot.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), the hyperpartisan House member from Urbana has won the secret ballot defeating Scalise in a fight over control of the minority.
He is going to be defending Trump as his latest scandal involves his donor Jensen Huang.
Jensen Huang resigned as CEO of Nvidia after public reports and internal investigations surfaced regarding an inappropriate relationship with Alice Huang, a former executive at Megaspeed and a suspected Chinese intelligence asset.
Under Huang's leadership, Nvidia donated $25 million to fund President Trump's White House ballroom renovation project.
As a co-founder and the first chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, Jordan has built a loyal following among grassroots voters who favor hardline fiscal and social policies.
Allies praise his combative style in high-profile committee hearings. Following the GOP's 2026 midterm losses, fellow Republicans—such as Rep. Nicole Malliotakis—described him as a "fighter" well-suited to defend President Donald Trump and counter incoming Democratic investigations.
Throughout his career, Jordan has repeatedly clashed with GOP leadership and helped orchestrate government shutdown fights, leading former Republican House Speaker John Boehner to famously label him a "legislative terrorist".
Democrats and critics heavily scrutinize his role in efforts to challenge the 2020 presidential election results. He has also faced persistent criticism over allegations from former Ohio State University wrestlers claiming he failed to act on reports of sexual misconduct by team doctor Richard Strauss during Jordan's tenure as an assistant coach in the late 1980s and early 1990s—allegations Jordan has consistently denied.
Do you want two years of the same pro Israel Democratic leadership? The senate Dems are debating whether they continue allowing Chuck Schumer drag them down.
Updated to the recent Democratic wins.
The Democratic Party rode the Blue Wave.
They swept into power completely wiping out the Republican Party. The Democrats are on pace to have 260 House seats and 56 Senate seats (with three independent members Bernie Sanders, Angus King and John Fetterman caucusing with them).
Scott Colom has won his race in Mississippi on Wednesday. Mary Peltola is likely to win her race by Friday.
Do you believe Democrats are going to be laser focused on fixing the mess of President Donald J. Trump's second choatic term?
Will these Democrats finally put "people above party" to prove a point in American politics?
Is "Blue No Matter Who" going to lead us to more antics from the likes of John Fetterman and Haley Stevens?
Well before I go into my rant, I want to say that if any Democratic operative reads this, I want to say thank you for getting an opportunity to read this. Maybe I can inspire a change in how the party runs things.
The president is hovering around 27% in the job approval. Congress has a job approval of 17%. Vice President JD Vance is faring better with a job approval of 28%. Overall, the direction of the country is bad. About 69% believe the country is on the wrong track.
So my honest opinion about the Democratic Party.
They are garbage. Trash. A total colossal cluster fuck.
And they can thank former president Joe Biden, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Sen. John Fetterman (I-PA), Ken Martin and the Democratic National Committee. A party trying to stay popular when their policies are never delivered. A party that continues to gaslight us about the opposition being in the pockets of the elite while doing the same. The party that calls out the opposition for being racial extremists but end up being racial extremists too.
We got a lot a work to do.
The Republican Party were driven to a massive minority. They became a bunch of big government nannies that pushed culture wars into federal laws. The overreach generated a massive backlash. All of that hypocrisy they've carried on as small government and freedom loving patriots.
First things first, the Democrats must focus on issues that matter to all Americans. The economy for one thing is a big issue. We are witnessing the potential for a catastrophic crash thanks to the war with Iran, Trump's tariffs, his fly off the handle policies and the potential for more government shutdowns.
If the Democrats are motivated to talk about how the policies of the past are not working, they better start talking now.
Capitalism isn't prospering for the middle class or the lower class. This trickle down economics is not benefiting the working class. The need to be honest about capitalism being a disaster has to be addressed.
The Democratic Party is still supportive of capitalism. Many now see capitalism rooted in white supremacy, economic inequality and greed.
The policies the Republican Party presented were the status quo. They are the big government nannies they long tagged the Democratic Party for years as.
People are starting to notice that Hakeem Jeffries loves to explain things using his hands. He cannot explain how to keep the party in line. Just recently 11 members failed to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Socialism, once a toxic word and a tag on almost every Democratic politician should no longer be a slur. It is time for Americans to understand that the oligarchy that led to wealth inequality is a product of capitalism. We need to equate capitalism to the rise in food prices, health costs, insurance premiums increasing and private equity firms destroying companies.
Right now capitalism is driving food banks to the brink. Capitalism is not making Americans own homes. Capitalism is making harder for Americans to see a doctor, a dentist, a daycare provider, a veterinarian, a mechanic or take a vacation.
Capitalism has allowed Peter Thiel, Sergey Brin, Rupert Murdoch, Elon Musk, Miriam Adelson, Jensen Huang, First Lady Melania Trump and Richard Branson get richer. Note they are American naturalized but foreign born. Yet, the president and his immigration forces aren't trying to denaturalize them for hoarding wealth.
They are his bigget donors.
Israel, Israel, Israel..... When the party support for Israel is a mere 8%, why is the Democratic Party still trying to encourage their voters to support this country?
They're on their knees giving in to Israel and its minions.
As Israel continues to commit a genocide under the guise of a ceasefire, some Democrats and the influncers are calling out the progressive base for moving on from Gaza.
I haven't moved on from Israel. I am laser focused on ensuring Israel will fall. I am seeing the endless attacks on Zohran Mamdani, Ilhan Omar, Don Leonard, Abdul El-Sayed, Rashida Tlaib, Peggy Flanagan and Troy Jackon for bucking the Democrats on their support of Israel.
When President Joe Biden played nice it became fodder for President Donald J. Trump and his minions.
I get it.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris should face criticism for ignoring the concerns.
The former president once loved in his ancestral home of Ireland was pelted with rocks as he was on a book tour for his controversial memior.
Biden has left a bad taste in Democrats mouths. His tepid and ineffective presidency went down hill when he decided to back Israel over the United Nations. Since the Oct. 7 resistance against apartheid genocidial ethnostate Israel, the U.S. continues to aid Israel as it is drives us to World War III. Trump has finally did something other presidents reluctantly wanted to do. Go to war with Iran.
Iran literally prepared for this since George W. Bush infamously declared Iran a part of the Axis of Evil.
Biden barely went on the campaign trail. He is facing a terminal cancer and a legacy marred with weak pressure on Trump. Democrats demanded Biden go aggressive on Trump. By slow walking, Trump used the rigged system to literally get away with crimes against humanity. He should have been imprisoned for the Jan. 6 insurrection. Biden wanted to turn the page. It was the biggest mistake he made in his presidency.
But what should be done now that the Democrats took control and have a massive agenda that Trump is likely to oppose in his final two years?
The talk is many will not back another Kamala Harris run. They think she is too compromised and not willing to change on issues that progressive demand her to stand on.
I am all for Harris to run again. I am all for the former vice president to catch the smoke.
They put too much pressure on her during her 104 days running. She was casted in the shadow of Biden's foreign and domestic policies.
Harris was not the president. She was the vice president. Her jobs were to cast tie breaking votes in the Senate when the split is 50-50. They gave her smoke. Now the smoke is hitting Vice President JD Vance.
He finally admitted the massive Republican loses came from Trump.
I doubt he wants to run because he just recently became a father for the fourth time. Why would he want to spend more time running a country while his newborn son is being raised?
If she runs again, this time she better have a better ground game. She has to keep Israel and their influencers out of her campaign.
He is literally is doing the same stuff but not held to the same standards. He is slowly catching heat after he openly admitted the Iran War cost the Republicans the majority.
He said without directly mention it.... MAGA is dead.
We bypassed all the deplorable shit the vice president said. Vance defended the Young Republicans Foundation chat scandal. Trump and Vance called for the firings of Americans who mocked the death of Charlie Kirk. Now on the election trail, this politician defends the racist, sexist and extremist rhetoric of white Republicans attacking El-Sayed.
They defended Vivek Ramaswamy's attack on Amy Acton using her estranged mother as weapon. It was just stupid rhetoric and it showed how deep Republicans are when ot comes to politics.
The KHIVE.
Becoming insufferable is not only a left, right and center issue, it's an all hands on deck.
The supporters of former vice president Kamala Harris are playing on this "We tried to warn you" nonsense. How can you morally stand on principles of being a progressive and back Israel?
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has always walked a fine line between progressive policies and the status quo. Her voice is becoming more influential as she decides to run for the senate or presidential bid.
First and foremost, Americans have a right to vote for whomever they chose.
Second, Harris failed to win over voters. She stuck with former president Joe Biden on the economy, Israel, Ukraine, immigration and inflation. The former president failed to listen to voters and his base.
The former president gave unilateral support and cover. We knew Trump would be worse. We demanded that Biden put pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel to stop killing and invading other countries.
The social media influencers who backed Harris ignored the progressive base and the calls for a ceasefire. They ignored the concerns about banning TikTok and calling everyone who opposes Israel a terrorist. They literally were on the "Vote Blue No Matter Who" mantra.
That shows the "tone deafness" within the party.
It is not Rep. Rashida Tlaib's (D-MI) fault for Biden and Harris' missteps. She warned them that Arab Americans did not like being ignored.
30% of Biden's 2020 base were disappointed with his stances on Israel. His iron clad support for that apartheid ethnostate harmed his reelection bid and hurt Harris when she took over after he dropped out. Somehow his stupid Catholic faith led him down this road to destruction. Not to mention the nearly $234 million in AIPAC funding.
Democratic establishment influncers are practically on these platforms saying that they ain't helping the former Biden/Harris voters who voted for as Trump.
That's perfectly fine.
It makes progressives more independent and it declines support for Democratic candidates.
Pennsylvania Democrats got it wrong. They voted for John Fetterman. In return, he has become a distraction and a chaos agent. He is now an independent.
MAGAland politicians are going crazy. They belive the No Kings protesters are not genuine. The protests are growing and it appears to be more inclined to white grievances about Trump not delivering on lowering the costs of living.
I voted for Harris for president. I have told family members that Israel will be a major factor. Trump's near assassination was a big factor. His mugshot too. He tapped into the grievances of the American people.
Democrats wasted too much time scaring voters. I get it. Trump continues to be an essential threat to the country. I posted on this blog numerous times about it. But I also said that Biden and the Democrats' support for Israel was going to hurt them.
Not focusing on the economy could hurt them in 2024.
White men cannot get the U.S. back on the right track. We seen how Trump and Biden led us into endless chaos within their terms. Trump has become the first 21st Century president to never achieve 50% in positive successes. Yet, we reelected him for a second term despite the dangers he posed in his first chaotic term.
White nationalism exists mostly in the Republican Party. But the party is making inroads with Black, Hispanic, Asian, Jewish, Muslim and young voters. Republicans are pitching nationalism and often scapegoating to appeal to these groups.
Democrats are not far off. They are bleeding support because of their so called identity politics. We are screaming racism and antisemitism at the progressive base when the base is trying to encourage the party to change economic direction.
In 2026, we will have candidates running for some form of political office. Several of these candidates will be running as Democrats. Some are flawed people. The Democrats continue to push out candidates that are against the status quo. They are still committed to elected members who are old, supportive of Israel, willing to be bipartisan and willing to embrace conservative policies to stay in office.
Haley Stevens is prime example of why Democrats must abandon racial politics. Her campaign was dirty to the core.
It's that type of things that keeps Democrats in the minority.
About NED.
Neverending Distractions.
Words are just words.
Actions have consequences.
Republicans spent most of the election cycle claiming that the Democratic Socialists of America were an essential threat. They said that Abdul El-Sayed is aligned to the Muslim Brotherhood. They claimed that Ilhan Omar lied about her citizenship and married her brother. They claimed that immigrants were voting in federal elections.
Republicans spent more time claiming that everything was fine when it wasn't.
Y'all voted for a convictef felon and sexual predator to be our president.
This is America in decline.
No end to the Iran War.
No end to high gas prices.
No end to high grocery prices.
No Jeffrey Epstein files.
No end to gun violence.
No end to economic uncertainty.
We are not a Christian nation. So if any Republican or white nationalist promotes the notion that we are a Christian backed country, let them know that they need to read the fucking U.S. Constitution.
Lastly, more Americans are tired of our politicians not focusing on the needs of our citizens. So when they are talking about other issues outside an endless war, a government shutdown, a crumbling economy and every fucking thing being expensive, we must resist the notion to fall for these neverending distractions.
Imagine, the Democrats now have the Christian message. James Talarico is a Christian influncer who will be a senator from Texas.
I do not care about Trump destroying the White House for a damn ballroom. It is a distraction from a crumbling economy and a war he started for Israeli interest. It is just a fucking building and other fucking presidents before this fool done it in the past. Trump is vowing to never leave the presidency.
That is a red flag which Democrats should worry about but they first need to focus on fixing the American economy. Trump has been weakened by the massive losses. He has no choice but to compromise in his final two years. He cannot run for president ever again.
The White House can be replaced.
Joe Biden had speed bumps like Kyrsten Sinema, Joe Manchin and John Fetterman.
Donald J. Trimp had speed bumps like Lisa Murkowski, Thom Tillis, Bill Cassidy and John Thune.
Had Biden directly confronted Democrats or pressured for primary challengers who supported his agenda, we wouldn't be in the messes we're in. Let me correct that.
Had he had more candidates that were progressive, we could have pressured Biden to do more to bring Democrats out to vote.
We had to play nice.
The Democrats lost so much in a span of six years. This election gave then another opportunity to turn it around. They better do something different because the voters are not trusting of them regardless.
When the Democrats took control of Congress in 2019, they had an opportunity to work with Trump to at least moderate his stances. Unfortunately Trump did not play nice and it lead to the hyper partisan gridlock. This time around, Trump does not have the massive sway to get Republicans on board. He literally running on fumes for the next two years.
Trump claimed he wasn't on the ballot. But sure enough his polices were and the American people saw that bullshit smells and he is lying in it.
Biden played nice in a time when everyone was still polarized.
Abdul El-Sayed fought against a machine of big money, racial dog whistles and bitter alliances to become Michigan's newest senator.
While being diverse in ideas, the Democratic Party is far from progressive. These three entities in the Senate as well as Democrats in House districts Trump won in 2024 are placing the party in the centrist/conservative category. The progressives picked up over 100 seats. It is a huge win but these wins do not mean shit if the moderates and pro Israel Dems continue to play nice or make the rules.
The Democrats will likely block President Donald J. Trump from appointing new Supreme Court nominees.
Now the Democrats have to put forward an agenda that works for all of us.
No more mocking the white angry voters. White men barely supported Democrats this go around. While the vote still went to the Republicans, the Democrats managed to narrow the gap. White women, the swing voters gave Democrats a slight advantage this go around. They won them by 60%.
No more taking advantage of the non college educated voter. Democrats need to get into the business of troll farming, disinformation, grievance politics and less about identity politics.
No more idol worshiping. The Republicans worship Trump. Democrats cannot relish on firsts. Yeah, the diversity has increased within the Democratic Party but accountability factor will remain a top priority.
I don't care about any of the diverse achievements. I care about my paychceck. I care what will these lawmakers do for my community, my state and my country.
The Republicans worship greed, hate, getting in people's businesses and sexual predatory behavior. If a Democrat has a sex scandal that doesn't involve legal ramifications, fucking ignore the allegations. I am serious. If there is no criminal conviction, it's an allegation.
Ignore the calls to leave but clearly state why you carry baggage. Because if you care about changing the city, district or state you want to represent, your personal problems cannot outweigh the actual problems constituents face.
Remember felons can run for public office. No one is perfect and running for politics is likely a way to redeem past sins.
Stop trying to paint MAGAland as idiots. Nevermind. Paint the social media influencers tied to MAGAland as grifters who endure their voters be idiots when the go to the polls.
I know that sounds like I am siding with Trump but I am not. I am no longer going to embrace the social influencers who try to paint the Trump supporters as morons.
The time to do soul searching is over. It is all out war.
If Republicans want to keep their guns, maybe Democrats should keep theirs.
No more condemning racism. It is time to just allow the conspiracy theories, racism and hate fester. Cause it may eventually be the Republican Party's undoing. It's free speech no matter how disgusting it is. I mean as long as these folks have no physical contact, it's just smoke and no fire.
Cause if you can call Puerto Rico an island of garbage, let's no longer seize on it. It is an opinion. I believe Puerto Rico is a beautiful place and deserves so much better than being an associated territory of the United States.
Let the right deal with it and no longer allow our impulses to react to it.
The Republicans are moving towards fascism while the Democrats are moving towards conservatism.
Is it possible for a new political party?
Yes.
The two party system is wearing thin. Republicans have a favorably of 23%. The Democrats have a favorably of 28%.
Both parties are not doing enough to solve America's problems.
If progressives need to divorce the Democrats, the time is now. I am not voting for the status quo.
I am going to vote for a candidate that focuses on issues that impact the growth of this flawed nation. Not distractions or words. Words do not pay the rent. They do not feed the families. They do not pay my bills. Words do not control the movement of policies.
Had Joe Biden took the fight to MAGA, he would have secured a second term.
No more slogans.
It's noise.
Folks, the Democrats must end the rules of engagement. They need to kick out the filth.
End their support of Israel, stop pandering to win votes, embrace embarrassments and stop trying to be friends with MAGAland.
Blue MAGA is a threat too. Because they are too cozy with religion, apartheid, income inequality and racism.
The Democratic Party is now conservative while the Republican Party is now fascist.
The Democrats are ignoring the progressive base.
No more happy clappy liberal. It is dirt bag left. It is the fight for our lives.
More Hasan Piker and less Shannon Watts.
More Medhi Hasan and less Neera Tanden.
More Kenny Walden and less James Carville.
More Jennifer Welch and less Van Jones.
More The Jaam, Reese Waters, IamBlakeLey and Rashid Wally.
I am sorry Stephanie Miller, Laurie Daniels Favors, Zerlina Maxwell, Reecie Colbert, Clay Cane and Thom Hartmann: we ain't winning on being positive. I think it time to go negative and embrace the right's definitions of the left. If democratic socialism is working for European countries where their quality of life is far better than the U.S., we need to have some form of this.
We cannot continue running on capitalism.
I am not advocating for violence but I time to stop condemning violence if its coming from the far right. They are gassing up people on purpose. They are so invested in making people believe the worst of one another because they're afraid if they become more progressive, it will decrease their coins. If it's done in the name of politics, it's because of the noise and not substance.
I am tired of trying to push for issues that are ignored.
I will remain an independent. I hold the Republican Party or Democratic Party accountable. I am going to stay progressive on most issues involving domestic and social issues. Show some conservative stances on finances giving that things are more expensive and the focus is more on home meals and no longer eating out.
They need to end mass texts from political groups. No more polls. No more we need you.
I will not worry about Trump or any future president. They will have costly mistakes and proven successes. I must accept it.
If the Democrats better get their act together, maybe they might have a shot in 2028. No reference to gun violence.
Let me get in before y'all start talking about presidential races.
Yearly wrap up.
Buzz for 2028.
Scott Colom defeats incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde Smith (R-MS) in a nail biting election.
Colom calls out the Republicans and Democrats for not investing in Mississippi.
His victory puts over 150 years of history behind us. There hasn't been a Black senator since Reconstruction. Colom, a former nominee for federal judge was blocked by Hyde Smith had called to concede.
It was a monumental victory for all who fought for progress.
The power is with the people, and the people of Mississippi are with Scott.
@scott_colom makes history today as the first Black senator elected in Mississippi since Reconstruction. I saw firsthand when campaigning with him in his hometown that he is a brilliant leader and dedicated public servant who will work tirelessly to serve every Mississippian with pride.
Congratulations, Scott.
We may have had to count One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, but Blue Mississippi sure has a nice ring to it! Scott, you put your heart and soul into this race because you believe in the promise of your state’s people. And they believed in you right back. I’m honored to have stood alongside you. Congratulations!
Congratulations @scott_colom. The people of Mississippi have realized their power and there's no going back. Scott, welcome to the fight. Let's get to work. https://t.co/FLn0IXqQNm
I was thrilled to hit the campaign trail with Scott Colom in Mississippi, and I’m even more thrilled that he’ll be joining me in the United States Senate! Congratulations, Senator-elect! Mississippi and our country are better for it! 💙
What a night for Mississippi!
Congrats Senator-elect @scott_colom. This was a well deserved, history-making victory.
Looking forward to serving alongside you! https://t.co/M4hlVdxvhk
Congratulations to my friend, Senator-elect @scott_colom. History was made today- you showed that hope rises in the South, and that Mississippi matters! https://t.co/mOTWbnpiBP
It gives 55 seats. We await the results of Dan Sullivan and Mary Peltola in Alaska.
Biden nominated Colom, a local prosecutor, to become a U.S. District Court judge for the Northern District of Mississippi.
Colom had backing from Mississippi’s senior senator, Republican Roger Wicker, and from former Gov. Haley Barbour, a national GOP power broker and former Republican National Committee chairman.
Hyde-Smith, however, invoked her “blue slip” power. That’s Senate lingo for a senator invoking the traditional, unwritten privilege of single-handedly blocking federal court nominees from their home state.
Sweet revenge. Former vice president Kamala Harris gets the last laugh. Cindy Hyde Smith was running her mouth too much.
That kind of move has bitten Democrats before, too.
In 1986 then-Alabama Sen. Howell Heflin cast the deciding committee vote — so, technically not a blue slip maneuver — against President Ronald Reagan’s district court nomination of a young U.S. attorney from Alabama named Jeff Sessions.
Ten years later Sessions won a Senate election to succeed Heflin when he retired. In 2017 he became Trump’s first attorney general; Trump later fired him.
Colom’s narrow victory is a seismic shift in Mississippi, which has been controlled mostly by white conservatives for generations despite having the largest share of Black residents of any U.S. state. The outcome adds to a decisive midterm rebuke of President Donald Trump, whose party suffered defeats in several Republican-controlled states, and it will bolster some Democrats’ argument that their future runs through the American South.
The Associated Press called the contest Wednesday in Colom’s favor after local elections officials spent several days processing absentee and provisional ballots, called affidavit ballots in Mississippi.
“While this is not the outcome we worked for or hoped for, I respect the decision of Mississippi voters,” Hyde-Smith, 67, said in a two-minute concession speech posted online. “I want to congratulate Scott Colom and wish him well as he takes on the tremendous responsibility of representing our great state.”
A spokesman for the senator said she called Colom to congratulate him and concede before the video was shared publicly.
Colom scheduled a victory celebration with supporters Wednesday night in Jackson.
The last time Mississippi chose a new Democratic senator was 1947, and the winner then was a staunch segregationist. Colom, a 43-year-old local prosecutor, capitalized on the large Black population, discontent with the economy and Hyde-Smith’s missteps as she sought a second full term.
“They actually deserve a senator that will listen to them, that actually cares about what they think, actually cares about what they’re going through,” Colom said in the campaign’s closing stretch.
Colom said during the campaign that he could represent all of Mississippi, a state where racial divisions have long defined its politics and society.
“It’s got to be about having a party that represents rural America again, suburban America, urban America — a party that makes sure we actually deliver for voters in ways that make their lives better,” he said.
National Democrats, activists and Mississippians celebrate
Party leaders hailed the senator-elect’s triumph, with nods to the South’s emerging battleground status after other upset victories from North Carolina to Texas.
“Scott Colom is the only person who could’ve gotten this done,” Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer of New York posted online. “Along with his staff and volunteers, Scott ran the campaign of a lifetime and re-imagined what’s possible for Democrats in the South.”
Former President Bill Clinton, a native Arkansan who campaigned with Colom days before the election, addressed the senator-elect on social media, saying he won “because you believe in the promise of your state’s people. And they believed in you right back.”
Vera Finley was among those supporters, and she arrived early Wednesday to Colom’s victory party.
“I am here to celebrate my parents and my grandparents. I am not one generation out of the cotton fields,” Finley said. “Both of my parents picked cotton. And my great grandmother was sold here as a slave from Virginia to here. So I am so excited to be on this side of history.”
Another Mississippian, NAACP President Derrick Johnson, issued a statement saying the state’s voters “made history because they refused to be intimidated, discouraged, or counted out.”
“In a state that has witnessed some of the nation’s most difficult battles for voting rights, Black voters once again demonstrated the power of civic engagement and the strength of our democracy,” Johnson said.
The end of the road for Trump's acolyte Cindy Hyde Smith.
A race Washington once viewed as a long shot
Despite Schumer’s support, the contest was a latecomer to the national spotlight, finally drawing attention and money months after Black senators, including Georgia’s Raphael Warnock and Maryland’s Angela Alsobrooks, first urged donors and party leaders to see Mississippi as winnable.
The son of a onetime Republican who worked for President Ronald Reagan, Colom garnered attention for his aggressive campaign as Democrats widened the Senate battleground map and Hyde-Smith’s vulnerabilities crystallized.
He produced of the year’s most widely circulated ads. After Hyde-Smith seemed to brush off high beef prices by saying consumers could choose other proteins, Colom cut a 30-second spot depicting incredulous voters saying they’d “pick another senator instead.”
When Trump came to Corinth, Mississippi, in late October for a rally with Hyde-Smith, Colom walked the line of Trump supporters as they waited outside the gates. He introduced himself, asked about their concerns and explained his priorities.
Later that evening, when Trump called Hyde-Smith to the stage, she said nine words in six seconds: “Is this not the best president in our lifetime?”
Then she stepped away.
Colom’s appearance outside the rally tracked his strategy of criticizing Trump’s policies — especially the Iran war and tariffs that he said were especially hard on Mississippi farmers — without taking personal jabs at the president or people who voted for him. Instead, he consistently put the onus on Hyde-Smith, framing her as a nonentity in Washington — a critique that resonated in a state accustomed to long-serving senators like Thad Cochran, Trent Lott and John Stennis, who all rose to powerful posts and routed federal money back to Mississippi.
There is some irony to Hyde-Smith losing to Colom. In 2022, then-President Joe Biden nominated Colom to be a U.S. District Court judge in the Northern District of Mississippi. Mississippi’s senior Republican Sen. Roger Wicker and former Gov. Haley Barbour, who is also a former national Republican chairman, backed the nomination.
Hyde-Smith, however, blocked Colom’s confirmation under the Senate tradition that members can spike a president’s choices for federal judicial positions in their home state. Colom said his campaign was never about getting even with Hyde-Smith.
Colom called on Mississippi’s history
The senator-elect concluded his campaign with an ad that featured him at the Jackson home of Medgar Evers, the civil rights leader who, in 1963, was gunned down in his driveway by a white supremacist and died in front of his family.
“In Mississippi, no one is above the law, and no one should be outside its protection,” Colom said, telling the story of Evers’ military service at Normandy in World War II, his voter registration efforts in Mississippi, his assassination and the three decades it took to win a conviction.
“He was killed for helping Mississippians vote,” Colom said. “On Tuesday, use your vote and honor everyone who died for that right.”
Schumer helped Colom raise money, and he drew financial support from other outside players, including Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a billionaire and potential presidential candidate.
Former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned on Colom’s behalf in the campaign’s closing weeks.
Despite Republicans’ domination, the path was always there
Because of the Black population and its alignment with Democrats, Mississippi’s general elections have been closer for years than its immediate Southern neighbors. Trump won by double digits in each of his three presidential contests, but in 2023, Republican Gov. Tate Reeves managed to win reelection by a margin of just 3 percentage points.
Colom and other Black party leaders and strategists insisted throughout 2026 that he could narrow the gap with strong Black turnout, Republican voter discontent and an uptick in Democrats’ usual share of the white vote in Mississippi.
Results showed strong turnout in the Mississippi Delta and its concentration of majority Black counties. But nearly all of the state moved leftward from the 2024 election, when Trump carried Mississippi by nearly 23 points.
Then-Gov. Phil Bryant first appointed Hyde-Smith, who was state agriculture commissioner, to the Senate in 2018 when Cochran resigned. She won a special election runoff in 2018 and a full term in 2020. Both times she defeated Democrat Mike Espy, a former U.S. agriculture secretary who’d also been Mississippi’s first Black congressman since Reconstruction.
During the extended vote count, Colom acknowledged the historic nature of doing what Espy could not. But he said he sees his place more in terms of other Mississippians, especially its youngest residents, than his individual story.
“My job is to do well enough as the next United States senator that the next time some young Black boy or girl has the work ethic, the vision, and the values,” he said, “and they want to be United States senator, that nobody says because of anything I’ve done that they shouldn’t get a chance.”
