The Senate map expands (again): From the Politics Desk

The latest addition to the Senate map is a spending move, not a new candidate: Senate Majority PAC says it will spend $1.2 million on ads in Mississippi through Election Day. The ads support prosecutor Scott Colom, who is challenging Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith.

The PAC’s spot presents Colom as someone who has taken on corruption in both parties and portrays Hyde-Smith as ineffective. Those are campaign claims from a Democratic-aligned group, not independent findings.

Mississippi is a steep climb for Democrats; Donald Trump carried the state by 23 points, and Democrats have not won a Senate race there since 1982. The ad buy shows the party’s allies are willing to spend in a state where the odds are long.

The “expanding map” is about where national groups choose to invest. Whether the ads move voters is an open question, but they signal that Senate Democrats see value in forcing Republicans to defend the seat.