Mississippi independent Ty Pinkins drew 20,000 votes from Republican counties

About 20,000 voters in Mississippi cast ballots for independent Ty Pinkins in the U.S. Senate race. His vote total helped decide a contest that lacked a clear winner for more than a week after Election Day. Democratic candidate Scott Colom secured the seat, a result officially confirmed just over seven days after voters went to the polls. Colom will serve as the state's first Black U.S. senator since Reconstruction.

Pinkins ran as the third option on the ballot against incumbent Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith and Colom. He told WTVA that he entered the race knowing he could not win. He stayed on the ballot to demonstrate the freedom voters have in a democracy to choose any candidate.

A poll cited by Pinkins indicated that 70 percent of his supporters were disgruntled Republican voters. He said he deliberately avoided campaigning in majority-Black areas to target that specific group of voters. "What I actually did was split the Republican vote," Pinkins said in an interview the day after the election. "Most of my votes came from Harrison County, DeSoto County, Rankin County, Jackson County, Hancock County, Madison County, Jones County, Pearl River County, Lamar County."

Pinkins noted that those counties have Black populations ranging from 10 percent to 16 percent. He contrasted his strategy with Colom's, who campaigned across the entire state. "People were concerned about splitting the Black vote," Pinkins said. "The portion of the vote that I drew.. I did not go to the Mississippi Delta. While Scott Colom was going all over this state."

The independent candidate has gained national attention despite finishing in third place. His presence on the ballot swayed the outcome of the close Senate race in Mississippi.