Federal Spotlight: Mississippi Senate Race Decided; Senate Numbers Set, House Still Unknown

Incumbent Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi defeated Democrat challenger Mike Espy in a runoff election for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday night. Hyde-Smith received a plurality of the vote on November 6th, but Mississippi law requires a runoff between the top two candidates if no candidate receives a majority of the vote on the day of the original election. With this race now in the books, Republicans will control the Senate in the 116th Congress with a 53-47 majority. There are still a few outstanding races in the House, but it’s clear at this point that Democrats are in the majority and will set the agenda for the lower chamber. RealClearPolitics currently has the Democrats at 234 seats, while Republicans are at 200 seats.