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Former Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Mississippi to campaign for Scott Colom, Mississippi’s Democratic Senate nominee, in Columbus on Oct. 22, a campaign spokesperson told Mississippi Today.
Harris’s stop in east Mississippi will mark the second day of her final fall campaign blitz on behalf of other Democrats ahead of the midterms. The former vice president is the latest in a string of national Democratic figures to campaign for Colom, or announce that they will, as the Nov. 3 election nears.
Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith has blasted Colom for his ties to the national party and use of national Democratic surrogates in his campaign in what has become a negative race in the home stretch before Nov. 3. Colom has countered Hyde-Smith is out of touch with average Mississippians and afraid to face her constituents at-large in town halls or to debate him.
“I am honored to have Vice President Harris join me on the campaign trail as we fight to lower costs for Mississippi families, raise the minimum wage, and save healthcare and our rural hospitals,” Colom said in a statement.
More details about where the campaign event would take place in Columbus were not yet available on Wednesday.
Colom, competing against Hyde-Smith and independent candidate Ty Pinkins, has in recent weeks seen a flurry of support from national Democratic leaders. Former President Barack Obama endorsed Colom in an ad that started running this week, and former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced plans to campaign in Mississippi along the Gulf Coast on Oct. 27.
Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia will host a fundraiser, conduct a conversation with faith leaders and headline a campaign rally on behalf of Colom in Jackson on Wednesday.
Those who have already visited Mississippi for Colom include Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware, Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and Cory Booker of New Jersey.
Harris’s trip marks her second visit to Mississippi in the past year. She came to Jackson in January for her book tour and spoke before a packed crowd at the newly reopened Thalia Mara Hall.
Harris has said in multiple recent interviews that she’s focused on helping Democrats win in November. But she’s not ruled out another presidential campaign after losing the 2024 general election to Donald Trump.
