全美共和党参议员委员会（NRSC）正要求密西西比州选举官员保留选举文件和所有宣誓选票（通常称为临时选票），此举迈出了在这场备受瞩目的参议院选举中采取潜在法律行动的第一步。
The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is demanding that Mississippi election officials preserve election documents and all affidavit ballots, typically called provisional ballots, taking the first step toward possible legal action in the widely-watched Senate race.
根据决策台总部（Decision Desk HQ）的数据，截至周四晚上，这场参议院选举的胜负仍然难分伯仲，民主党人斯科特·科洛姆（Scott Colom）仅以不到2,000票的优势领先参议员辛迪·海德-史密斯（共和党）。
As of Thursday evening, the Senate race remains too close to call with Democrat Scott Colom leading Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) by just under 2,000 votes, according to Decision Desk HQ.
在致密西西比州全部82个县的选举专员的一封信中，海德-史密斯的律师要求县官员将宣誓选票隔离存放、记录其处理情况并保留“所有相关材料”。信中写道：“这些措施是确保能够核实每张宣誓选票的计票资格和最终处理结果所必需的。”
In a letter sent to the election commissioners in all 82 Mississippi counties, attorneys for Hyde-Smith demand that county officials separate out the affidavit ballots, document their disposition and preserve “all associated materials.”“These measures are necessary to ensure that each affidavit ballot’s eligibility for counting and ultimate disposition can be verified,” the letter reads.
联邦法律已经要求在联邦选举中保存选举记录，时间从选举之日起算为期22个月。
Federal law already requires that election records be maintained in federal races for 22 months from the election.
密西西比州的邮寄选票如果在选举日当天或之前盖有邮戳，可在选举后最多五天内收到。该州最高选举官员表示，他们正在等待观察这3,600张尚未收到的选票是否能及时送达，其数量远超足以潜在扭转选举结果的程度。
Mail ballots in Mississippi can be received up to five days after the election if they are postmarked by Election Day. The state’s top election official said they are waiting to see whether the 3,600 outstanding ballots, mor ethan enough to potentially swing the race, arrive in time.
据国务卿称，计票过程也可能会被拉长，因为该州的计票程序是在县一级进行的。
The counting process may also be drawn out because the state’s procedure for counting ballots is done at the county level, according to the secretary of state.
国务卿迈克尔·沃森（Michael Watson）周三在一份声明中表示：“由于密西西比州是一个自下而上的州，巡回书记官和选举专员在县一级运营选举……各县自选举之日起有10天时间向我们的办公室提交其认证结果，即11月13日。在我们获得认证结果之前，各县将是获取最新和最实时信息的最佳来源。” 即使最终票数差距依然如此微小，密西西比州也没有自动重新计票的规定或供候选人申请重新计票的方法。
“Since Mississippi is a bottom-up state, circuit clerks and election commissioners run elections at the county level … counties have 10 days from the date of the election to submit their certified results to our office, which is November 13,” Secretary of State Michael Watson said in a statement Wednesday. “Until we have the certified results, the individual counties will be the best source of the latest and most up-to-date information.”Even if the final margin finishes as close as it is now, Mississippi has no automatic recount provision or method for a candidate to request one.
在一份声明中，科洛姆的竞选团队将全美共和党参议员委员会的信件称为“孤注一掷的把戏”。
In a statement, Colom’s campaign called the NRSC’s letter a “desperate stunt.”
竞选团队表示：“来自全国共和党人的这个孤注一掷的把戏，正是当你明知自己要输掉一场选举时会做的事。我们坚信，当每一张合法的选票都被清点时，斯科特·科洛姆将成为密西西比州的下一位美国参议员。” 科洛姆的胜利在深红的密西西比州将是非同寻常的。自1982年以来，民主党人从未在木兰之州赢得过美国参议院席位，自重建时期以来该州也再未有过黑人参议员。
“This desperate stunt from national Republicans is what you do when you know you’re about to lose a race,” the campaign said. “We’re confident that when every lawful ballot is counted, Scott Colom will be Mississippi’s next U.S. senator.”A victory for Colom would be remarkable in deep-red Mississippi. A Democrat has not won a U.S. Senate seat in the Magnolia State since 1982, and the state has not had a Black senator since reconstruction.