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Alaska and Mississippi Senate Races 2026: Latest Count and What Happens Next

Facts checked Nov. 9, 2026 · Jamoke News does not project winners or call races; results link to the AP.

As of Nov. 9, 2026, 6:30 a.m. ET, two U.S. Senate races from the Nov. 3, 2026 midterms were still uncalled: Alaska, where Democrat Mary Peltola narrowly leads Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, and Mississippi, where Democrat Scott Colom narrowly leads Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith. Democrats already won Senate control, the AP reported, so these races decide the size of the majority, not who holds it. Jamoke News does not call races; counts below are the latest reported.

Latest count

• Alaska: Mary Peltola (D) led Sen. Dan Sullivan (R) 102,962 to 102,325 (48.0% to 47.7%) in unofficial first-choice results last posted Nov. 4 and unchanged as of Nov. 8. Tens of thousands of early and absentee ballots are still uncounted; the next scheduled count is Tuesday, Nov. 10, including early votes cast Oct. 30 to Nov. 2 and questioned ballots. No one has a majority, so the outcome depends on ranked-choice tabulation, scheduled for Nov. 18. (Alaska's News Source)
• Mississippi: Scott Colom (D) led Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) by 2,574 votes (467,930 to 465,356) with about 97% of votes counted in the AP's latest estimate as of Sunday, Nov. 8. Secretary of State Michael Watson said 75 of 82 counties had uploaded unofficial results, 12,767 affidavit ballots had been processed (about 77% accepted) and just over 2,800 absentee mail ballots were still out. (WAPT, Nov. 8)

For live counts and race calls see AP election results. All 2026 results: who won the House, Senate and governor races

Alaska: why it takes until Nov. 18

Alaska uses ranked-choice voting in general elections. On election night the state reports only voters’ first choices. If no candidate wins more than 50% of first choices, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots move to their next choice, round by round, until someone has a majority. With four Senate candidates on the ballot and neither Peltola nor Sullivan above 50%, the race goes to tabulation. The Division of Elections says ranked-choice results will not be available until Nov. 18, 2026, after all eligible ballots, including late-arriving absentee ballots, are reviewed and counted.

The ballot also listed a second “Dan Sullivan” (Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., no party), who drew about 1.7% of first choices; his voters’ second choices could matter in the tabulation. How ranked-choice counting works · Alaska 2026 election guide

Still to count (as of Nov. 6): the Division of Elections had counted 215,912 ballots in results last posted Wednesday, Nov. 4, and estimated roughly 20,000 early votes and about 40,000 absentee ballots, most of them still uncounted, the Anchorage Daily News reported. As of Nov. 8 the posted count had not changed since Nov. 4. The next scheduled count is Tuesday, Nov. 10, seven days after Election Day; it will include early votes cast Oct. 30 to Nov. 2 and questioned ballots, according to the Division of Elections, Alaska’s News Source reported. Peltola’s campaign sued on Nov. 6 under the state public records law for the register of rejected absentee ballots; the state says it is not required to release it.

Sources: Anchorage Daily News: Alaska is still counting ballots. When will we know who won?, Nov. 6, 2026 · Alaska's News Source (KTUU): When are ballots counted in Alaska?, Nov. 5, 2026 · Alaska Public Media: Peltola campaign demands information about rejected absentee ballots, Nov. 6, 2026 · Alaska Division of Elections: 2026 general election results page · Alaska Division of Elections: 2026 general election summary report (unofficial) · Alaska Division of Elections: ballot counting schedule · USA Today: Alaska Senate results, Sullivan vs. Peltola

Mississippi: deadlines and recount rules

• No runoff: the candidate with the most votes wins; a majority is not required.
• Ballots still being counted: as of Sunday, Nov. 8, Secretary of State Michael Watson said 75 of the 82 counties had uploaded unofficial results, 12,767 affidavit (provisional) ballots had been processed with about 77% accepted, and just over 2,800 absentee mail ballots were still out, WAPT reported. On Nov. 6 he had estimated 12,000 to 20,000 affidavit ballots statewide. Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day count if they arrive by Nov. 10.
• Observers and lawyers: the state Republican Party said it deployed more than 50 attorneys and observers, and the National Republican Senatorial Committee asked counties to separate and preserve all affidavit ballots.
• Nov. 10, 2026: deadline for eligible absentee ballots to arrive and for provisional-ballot issues to be resolved, according to WXXV.
• Nov. 13, 2026: deadline for counties to certify their results.
• Recounts: Mississippi has no automatic recount and no procedure for a candidate to simply request one; a judge would have to order a new count based on findings of fraud or irregularities.

Colom, a district attorney, would be the first Black U.S. senator elected from Mississippi since 1875 if he wins, the BBC noted.

Sources: WAPT: Watson says 2,800-plus absentee ballots still out as Mississippi count continues, Nov. 8, 2026 · WLBT: Colom meets Jackson voters as Senate ballot count continues, Nov. 6, 2026 · Mississippi Today: Mississippi Senate vote counting drags on, Nov. 6, 2026 · BBC: Democrat leads by dozens of votes in surprisingly tight Mississippi Senate race · Action News 5: Mississippi Senate race could come down to a handful of votes, Nov. 5, 2026 · WXXV News 25: Mississippi Senate race remains too close to call · CBS News: Mississippi Senate race still a toss-up, with razor-thin margin · The Guardian: US midterms live, Nov. 5, 2026

Key dates after the 2026 midterms

• Nov. 10: next scheduled Alaska count (early votes cast Oct. 30 to Nov. 2, absentee and questioned ballots); Mississippi absentee and provisional-ballot deadline.
• Nov. 13: Mississippi county certification deadline; Alaska deadline for absentee ballots mailed within the U.S., with another results update.
• Nov. 18: Alaska deadline for overseas ballots and ranked-choice tabulation.
• Nov. 25: Alaska’s target date to certify results.
• Dec. 1: Georgia general election runoff date, if any race requires one. Georgia runoff rules
• Jan. 3, 2027 (noon): terms of newly elected senators and House members begin under the 20th Amendment. Jan. 3, 2027 is a Sunday; Congress can set a different day for its first meeting by law.

Sources: Anchorage Daily News: Alaska is still counting ballots. When will we know who won?, Nov. 6, 2026 · Alaska's News Source (KTUU): When are ballots counted in Alaska?, Nov. 5, 2026 · U.S. Constitution, 20th Amendment (Constitution Annotated)

Counts change as ballots are processed. A race “call” is a projection by a news organization; states certify official results.