Republican Nominee for U.S. Senate, Mississippi
By Rebecca Horvath, Tennessee
After months of exhausting campaigning, candidates across the country breathed a sigh of relief on November 7. But for one Republican woman, there was no rest in sight: it was the first day of a second round of campaigning.
On November 6, U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith was one of four candidates on the ballot in the U.S. Senate special election in Mississippi. The winner of this special election would finish the Senate term of Sen. Thad Cochran, whose health issues necessitated his retirement in April. Governor Phil Bryant appointed Hyde-Smith to fill the position until the election, making her the first Mississippi woman to serve in either chamber of Congress. She then chose to run for the remainder of the term.
Hyde-Smith earned the most votes, but no candidate took a simple majority, meaning a runoff election between the top two vote-getters will determine the winner. On November 27, Hyde-Smith will face Democrat Mike Espy, who previously served as a Mississippi state representative and later as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.
While Hyde-Smith is still a newcomer to the Senate, she’s jumped in with both feet, serving on the Appropriations, Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, and Rules and Administration committees. Her prior political experience runs deep; she was a Mississippi state senator for twelve years before being elected to two terms as state Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce.
As a wife and mother and as a member of a fifth-generation farming family, she understands the concerns of hardworking folks around the country. She believes her long track record of conservatism represents the values Mississippians want to see in Washington.
Hyde-Smith is a staunch pro-life advocate and counts repealing the Affordable Care Act, making President Donald Trump’s tax cuts permanent, protecting the Second Amendment and building the border wall among her biggest priorities in the Senate. She’s been officially endorsed by the President.
The Senator acknowledges the difficulty of not only having a runoff election, but also the timing of this particular one. On the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, most people are focused on the holidays, not another trip to the polls. But voter turnout will be crucial in maintaining Republican control of this vital Senate seat, and Cindy Hyde-Smith is working tirelessly to earn every vote.
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