JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – The Mississippi Republican Party has called on federal law enforcement agencies to investigate a recent social media video released by Scott Colom, a Democratic district attorney in Mississippi who is running for U.S. Senate, challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith.
According to Mike Hurst, chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party, a voice in the video impersonated Hyde-Smith.
Today, I am calling upon federal law enforcement to investigate the shocking and deeply disturbing actions by a Democratic candidate who has stooped so low as to impersonate the voice of a sitting United States Senator for his personal benefit and gain.
Not only is this shameful and dishonest, it appears to be a direct violation of federal criminal law. Such reckless behavior imperils the very foundation of our Republic, which depends on truth, integrity, and trust in our democratic process.
The people of Mississippi—and throughout America—deserve leaders who are honest, honor the law, and respect the institutions of our government, not those who undermine them through deceit and trickery for their own benefit.
Mike Hurst, chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party
The Mississippi Republican Party sent the following letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Department of Justice and acting U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner requesting an investigation.
WJTV 12 News reached out to Hyde-Smith’s office about the video. They released the following statement.
We are aware of the fraudulent video Scott Colom released alleging a phone conversation with Senator Hyde-Smith. Voters will see Scott Colom for exactly who he is: an ethically challenged, soft-on-crime transgender defender who will say and do anything to deceive voters and please his national Democrat party handlers.
Nathan Calvert, Cindy Hyde-Smith for U.S. Senate Communications Director
Colom’s team also released a statement to WJTV 12 News about the video.
Cindy Hyde-Smith and her backers are so worried about her re-election that they’ve resorted to bogus complaints about social media parodies, which are core protected First Amendment speech.
Hyde-Smith’s record of giving tax breaks to millionaires in California and New York, slashing Medicaid for tens of thousands of Mississippians, and putting eight Mississippi hospitals at risk of closing gives her plenty of reason to be worried and in 2026, Mississippians will send Scott Colom to the Senate to fight for Mississippians over D.C. politics.
Team Colom
Colom announced his candidacy in a video Wednesday that criticized Hyde-Smith for voting for President Donald Trump’s ’big beautiful bill’, a sprawling piece of legislation that included Medicaid cuts, tax breaks and new money for national defense and deportations.
Colom also said he would fight to eliminate income taxes for teachers and law enforcement and boost wages for Mississippians.
Colom joins the race alongside U.S. Army Veteran Ty Pinkins, a former Democrat who announced he would be challenging Hyde-Smith as an Independent earlier this year.
-
FILE – Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., asks a question during the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill, May 9, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, file) -
FILE – Lowndes County District Attorney Scott Colom speaks at a news conference, July 6, 2016, in Columbus, Miss. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File) -
Ty Pinkins Democratic nominee for Mississippi Secretary of State addresses a group of business leaders at the 2023 Hobnob sponsored by the Mississippi Economic Council in Jackson, Miss., Thursday, Oct. 26 2023. (AP Photo/Rogelio V Solis)
It is not the first time Colom and Hyde-Smith have clashed. In 2023, Hyde-Smith blocked President Joe Biden’s nomination of Colom to a federal judgeship.
Hyde-Smith cited concerns about Colom’s connection to George Soros, a New York billionaire who gave money to Mississippi Safety and Justice, a political action committee that supported Colom’s 2015 race for district attorney. Soros did not contribute directly to Colom’s campaign.
In an attempt to sway Hyde-Smith, Colom wrote to her that he did not request the funds from Soros and did not know the money would be contributed to his campaign.
She also criticized Colom for opposing “legislation to protect female athletes,” after Colom signed a letter in June 2021 condemning efforts to criminalize gender-affirming care for transgender people.
Colom is running to flip a seat in a state where Republicans control all statewide offices and both chambers of the Legislature. Democrats have attempted to gain a foothold in the state in recent years. In 2023, Democrat Brandon Presley was narrowly defeated in a gubernatorial election by Gov. Tate Reeves, who received nearly 51% of the vote.
Colom is the district attorney in Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay and Noxubee counties. He is the first Black prosecutor in those counties, defeating the longtime incumbent Forrest Allgood in 2015. Colom was unopposed when he won a second term in 2019.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.