# Mississippi elects first black senator in 150 years

> Democrat Scott Colom wins a close race to become Mississippi's third black US senator ever, following Hiram Revels and Blanche Bruce in the 19th century.
- Title: Mississippi elects first black senator in 150 years · BBC News
- Summary: Democrat Scott Colom wins a close race to become Mississippi's third black US senator ever, following Hiram Revels and Blanche Bruce in the 19th century.
- Keywords: scott colom, mississippi, us senate, black senators, hiram revels, blanche bruce, democrat, BBC News
- Source: BBC News — https://bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmde1y19g19do
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: scott colom, mississippi, us senate, black senators, hiram revels, blanche bruce, democrat, news, world
## Colom wins historic Mississippi race
Democrat Scott Colom won a close race to become Mississippi's first black US senator for more than one hundred fifty years. He is the third black senator in the state's history.
## Two predecessors from the 1800s
Hiram Revels served from eighteen seventy to eighteen seventy-one as the first black person ever in the US Senate.
## Young voters and black turnout key
Colom's victory came through mobilising young people and Mississippi's large black population, who turned out in high numbers. Many first-time voters at Jackson State University, a historically black college, backed him.
## Colom invokes Revels' legacy of prayer
In his victory speech, Colom referenced Hiram Revels, a minister and Civil War chaplain who gained support through his words.

> That's an example of the power of prayer, and through our history, there are so many people that lifted this state up through the power of prayer in very dark times.
## Key takeaway

Scott Colom becomes Mississippi's first black US senator since 1875, mobilising young voters and the state's large black population in a deeply conservative state.