In Mississippi, voters await cliffhanger Senate result with hope and frustration

The BBC also visited Brookhaven, in Lincoln County, where Hyde-Smith was born and where Trump won a whopping 72% of votes two years ago.

Party loyalty here was on stark display, with everyone saying either they didn't vote or they voted for Hyde-Smith.

No-one denied the cost of living had gone up, but few here blamed Trump or Hyde-Smith.

"It always seems, no matter who's in office, there's a spike in gas prices. There's always a war. Things are always going up and down," said Travis Powe, a 29-year-old logger who voted for Hyde-Smith.

Keith Scott, a Trump supporter, said both parties had been "attacking Trump at all angles, which was why we voted for him".