"We do not want an Alabama": Hyde-Smith has Republicans who hold their breath

Republicans believe Cindy Hyde-Smith will win a victory in the Mississippi special senate elections Tuesday. But they say the race is narrowing – and after what happened in Alabama last year, they are running out.

The controversy surrounding the Republican senator – provoked by her comment on the "public hanging" – has given a boost to Democrat Mike Espy, officials from both parties said. Hyde-Smith has never dragged in the polls, and Democrats acknowledge that she's likely to win, but they say her failures gave Espy a very narrow opening if everything breaks. reverse.

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Henry Barbour, a member of the National Republican Committee Committee and a long-time member of Mississippi, said the base voters of both parties were animated, but gave a slight advantage to Espy's supporters. He said he expected a Hyde-Smith victory on Tuesday, but added that Republicans should worry about the potential for low voter turnout.

"I think Espy's fans are probably a little more energetic than Hyde-Smith," said Barbour. "But I think Conservative voters realize that this race will decide whether we have a Conservative or Liberal representative in Washington, which is very motivating for Conservative voters.

"We do not want an Alabama," he added, citing the defeat of Republican Roy Moore in 2017 against Democrat Doug Jones in a special Senate election in a very red state.

The Republicans are sending all the party force to Mississippi to prevent this scenario – starting with Donald Trump. The president will hold two rallies for Hyde-Smith on Monday, events that officials say should spark interest and Conservative participation during an unusual election during the holiday season.

"I will be in Gulfport and Tupelo, Mississippi, Monday night, to participate in two rallies for Senator Hyde-Smith, who is holding a very important election on Tuesday. He is a remarkable person, strong in terms of border, crime, army, great veterans, health care and 2nd A. Needed in DC, "wrote Trump in a pair of tweets addressed to the Senator .

The RNC has more than 100 paid field staff this weekend and has made more than 500,000 contacts with voters since Nov. 6, a spokesman said. The RNC transferred $ 1 million to the National Republican Committee of Senators earlier this month to help fund television ads in Mississippi.

National Republican and White House officials, who have been examining polls over the past week, remain confident in Hyde-Smith's victory. They say polls have always shown it with a lead ranging from the lower-middle digit to the low figure. A public poll last week by RRH Elections pushed Hyde-Smith up 10 points.

Still, White House officials have long expressed their discomfort about Hyde Smith and fear she is not ready for prime time. Earlier this year, two Trump advisers begged Governor Phil Bryant to appoint someone else to the post following the retirement of longtime Republican Senator Thad Cochran. But they are convinced that Hyde-Smith will win a victory, even if it is narrower than it should be.

A Republican working on the second round who requested anonymity to discuss private polls said the race had tightened recently, but expressed confidence that Hyde-Smith would be elected. "A victory is a victory," said the Republican.

Dan Eberhart, a Republican mega-donor who has contributed a lot to the GOP campaigns in the Senate this year, said the Trump rallies should eliminate any lingering concerns about the race.

"Trump is going to wear it on the finish line," Eberhart said.

Democrats acknowledge that Mr. Hyde-Smith will receive significant support at the President's campaign rallies on Monday. But they say that the apparitions will provide a spark to their constituents, too.

"When he comes, he will of course fire the Republican base," said Bobby Moak, chairman of the Democratic Party. "But he's also doing the same thing with the Democratic base."

Joe Trippi, a consultant working for the Espy campaign, said the Democrat was probably losing to less than 10% in the final days of the race. Hyde-Smith beat Espy by about 8,400 votes, a single percentage point, on Nov. 6, while Republican Chris McDaniel took 17 percent. They are in a runoff because no candidate has eclipsed 50%.

Democrats expect strong participation from their grassroots, partly driven by Hyde-Smith's hostile reactions to the first public hanging if one of his supporters calls for it, and a second remark about the limitation of the voting capacity of the Liberals. A Jackson newspaper, Misssissippi, also reported Friday attending a segregation academy for high school.

Espy called the senator's comments during the "black eye" campaign for the state, and a recent television advertisement of her campaign said she was reinforcing the stereotypes that the state has been working on to defeat. Several national companies, including Walmart and Major League Baseball, have requested that their donations to Hyde-Smith be reimbursed for these comments.

Trippi advised Jones during his unlikely win in Alabama last year and pointed out that Jones had won only 23,000 votes, despite the fact that he was running into a historically bad opponent who was motivating Democratic voters and reduced voter turnout.

"We think we have a real chance," said Trippi, comparing Tuesday's election to the Alabama race. "But if we win, it will be the same thing" – very little margin.

The Republicans, meanwhile, are attacking Espy by broadcasting television ads highlighting the $ 750,000 lobbyist contract he received from an Ivorian dictator earlier this decade. They also broadcast ads simply linking it to national democrats like Nancy Pelosi, hoping to prevent any cross-republican support.

Alex Isenstadt contributed to this report.