Polygraph

No Democrat has been elected to the U.S. Senate from Mississippi since 1982.

Posted by The Briefing with Jen Psaki, Checked

Polygraph verdictTrue
Sources
7 support
Said
1 time·
Confidence
85%
The Briefing with Jen PsakiOct 23, 2026
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45 claimsThe check →

Multiple sources state that Mississippi has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1982, when John Stennis was last re-elected, and the 1996–2024 results show only Republican winners. The claim's wording matches the passage, with 'from Mississippi' supplied by the post's context.

What was said

… They're looking out for their families and not Mississippi families. That's why we got the momentum to win. Donald Trump is planning on rallying in your state next week. It is a state uh, there hasn't been, let me see here, there hasn't been a Democrat elected to the Senate since 1982, and the president of the United States, the leader of the other party, is going to be there a week before the election. That tells you they're pretty freaked out. But what I mean, your opponent's going to be standing up there with him. …
The Briefing with Jen Psaki · · from the transcriptPost →

What we found

Supports. NPR (tier 2) reports that Mississippi 'hasn't elected a Democratic U.S. senator since 1982.'[3]

Supports. A Mississippi Democratic nominee history states that John C. Stennis won the 1982 election, that he left office in January 1989, and that 'No Democrat has won a Mississippi Senate race since.'[4]

Supports. AP election results list only Republican winners of Mississippi Senate seats from 1996 through 2024, including Roger Wicker's 2024 win over Democrat Ty Pinkins.[1][2]

Supports. Multiple outlets, including ABC News, Magnolia Tribune and MS NOW, repeat that Mississippi has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1982.[5][6][7]

Sources

7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 tier 2, 4 not rated

  1. 12026 Mississippi U.S. Senate Election Resultsapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
  2. 2Mississippi election results 2024reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
  3. 3Mississippi Senate race is drawing attention from high-profile Democratsnpr.org · tier 2 · cited for: supports
  4. 4A complete list of Mississippi Democratic U.S. Senate ...msindy.org · not rated · cited for: supports
  5. 5Mississippi hasn’t elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate ...magnoliatribune.com · not rated · cited for: supports
  6. 6Democrats aim for deep-red Mississippi Senate seat as ...abcnews.com · not rated · cited for: supports
  7. 7Democrats see opening in deep-red Mississippi Senate racems.now · not rated · cited for: supports

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Said in 1 published post

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