Secretary Mike Espy

The special election runoff in deep red Mississippi was expected to be a sleepy affair — a formality, even. Instead, the race has tightened as the GOP candidate stumbled over the state's racist past.

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, facing African-American opponent Mike Espy on Nov. 27, was caught on tape saying about a supporter, "If he invited me to a public hanging, I'd be on the front row."