These two voter turnout trends explain what happened across the South in the election

In six states across the Deep South, a drastic swing to the left this election was driven by high Black voter turnout and compounded by a sharp decline in voting rates across Republican-heavy areas.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/5331x3554+0+0/resize/5331x3554!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F53%2F00%2F1c863ac042edb4d8ad73de4ad62f%2Fgettyimages-2304690832.jpg' alt='Sen.-elect Scott Colom (D-MS) speaks during a victory rally on November 11, 2026 in Tougaloo, Mississippi.'/><p>In six states across the Deep South, a drastic swing to the left this election was driven by high Black voter turnout and compounded by a sharp decline in voting rates across Republican-heavy areas.</p><p>(Image credit: Brandon Bell/Getty Images)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-6038701' />