1.2 Million: The Price of a New Mississippi Senate Challenger

President Donald Trump campaigned in Corinth, Mississippi, on Monday to support Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.

Trump told the crowd his voice was hoarse, but he was there to ensure Hyde-Smith, who is facing Democrat Scott Colom, secured the win.

Colom, a local prosecutor, attended the rally site. He later said voters deserve a senator who listens to their concerns.

Mississippi is a state Trump won by an average of nearly 20 percentage points across three visits. Hyde-Smith remains the favorite for her second full term.

Colom seeks to become Mississippi's first Black senator since Reconstruction. He is leveraging voter discontent over inflation and the Iran war to challenge the incumbent.

Senate Democrats' super PAC invested $1.2 million in the race. Mississippians have not elected a new Democratic senator since 1947.

Trump's stop in Corinth begins a week of intense campaigning in states he won comfortably in 2024.

His schedule includes stops in Texas, South Carolina, and Iowa. He will also return to Salina, Kansas, on Saturday for his second visit in two weeks.

Vice President JD Vance campaigned in Kansas and Montana for Republican candidates. In North Topeka, he stumped for Senator Roger Marshall against Adam Hamilton.

Marshall, who has raised less money than his opponent, told a crowd at a steel-fabricating warehouse that Democrats are treating the election like a presidential race.

In Montana, Vance supported Aaron Flint and Kurt Alme in their respective congressional and senate races.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned in Wisconsin with Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. Crowley is running for governor against Republican Tom Tiffany in a tight race. Harris called the contest high-stakes for the party's future control of the House and Senate. More than 30 million Americans had already cast ballots as of Monday, according to Associated Press data from election administrators. In Michigan, Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed distanced himself from a commercial by Rebellion PAC that blamed grocery prices on U.S. support for Israel. Representative Haley Stevens, who lost to El-Sayed in the primary, criticized the ad for blaming the high cost of goods on Israel. El-Sayed, who would be the nation's first Muslim senator, has criticized Israel's military operations in Gaza while denouncing antisemitism. In New York, Representative Mike Lawler manned a McDonald's drive-thru in a move mimicking a tactic used by Trump two years ago. Lawler is in a close race with Democrat Cait Conley in the northern suburbs. National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott said Republican candidates are closing strongly in key races. He credited Trump's time on the trail for helping the party maintain a majority. The President said the war with Iran would end soon and that he had expected gas prices to rise higher than they did.