Democrats are pouring star power and money into one of the longest-shot Senate races on the map this cycle, with former President Barack Obama cutting a campaign ad for Mississippi Democrat Scott Colom and Vice President Kamala Harris set to campaign for him in Columbus on Thursday, Oct. 22 — eleven days before voters decide whether to unseat Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith.

The star-studded push is part of a $50 million effort from American Bridge 21st Century, a Democratic-aligned super PAC spreading money across several contested states this cycle, including roughly $2 million earmarked specifically for the Mississippi race. The PAC has not said how much of its broader war chest will ultimately flow to Colom's campaign, but the spending signals Democrats see at least a sliver of opportunity in a state that hasn't sent a Democrat to the Senate in decades.

An underdog race, even by Democrats' own admission

Colom, a former district attorney, launched his bid against Hyde-Smith last year built around frustration with the cost of living and health care access in one of the poorest states in the country. Semafor reported that national Democrats have quietly targeted the race for months, in part because of Mississippi's large Black population, a demographic the party is counting on to turn out in bigger numbers than usual. Even so, Semafor's own reporting calls Colom an underdog in a state Donald Trump carried by roughly 20 points last time out, and Mississippi Today describes the race as one of the longer shots the super PAC is willing to fund.

DEMOCRATS ARE MISSING A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY BY NOT SPENDING MORE.

That tension has spilled into public view. Rep. Bennie Thompson, Mississippi's lone Democrat in Congress, has pushed national party committees to spend more aggressively, arguing the DSCC is leaving real opportunity on the table by treating the race as a lost cause rather than a genuine pickup chance.

Hyde-Smith's campaign, meanwhile, has leaned into attacking Colom's ties to national Democratic figures, running social-media ads branding him "Biden's pick" and highlighting his alignment with national party leadership as a liability in a state that remains reliably conservative. She enters the final stretch with the advantages of incumbency and a direct endorsement from President Trump.

What's next

With Harris's visit set for Thursday and Obama's ad already airing, the closing days of the race will test whether splashy national surrogates can move a genuinely red-state electorate, or whether the spending simply pads the margin Hyde-Smith is still expected to win by. Both campaigns are expected to ramp up ad spending through Election Day on Nov. 3, with Colom's team framing the late momentum as proof the race is tighter than public polling suggests, and Hyde-Smith's team dismissing the star turnout as a sign of desperation from a campaign that knows it's behind.