Summary
Cindy Hyde-Smith was born in 1959 and is currently serving as the junior United States Senator from Mississippi. Senator Hyde-Smith was elected in 2018 and her seat will be up for election in 2024.
Cindy Hyde-Smith was appointed on April 9, 2018 by Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by long-time Senator Thad Cochran, who resigned in April 2018. Prior to her appointment to the Senate, Hyde-Smith was elected as Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce in 2011 and was reelected to that position in 2015.
Senator Hyde-Smith is currently serving on the Appropriations Committee; the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee; the Energy and Natural Resources Committee; and the Rules and Administration Committee.
Below is Senator Hyde-Smith’s voting record and public positions on issues important to the Jewish community.
Senator Hyde-Smith responded to the American Jewish Congress 2018 Senate Candidate Questionnaire and her answers are reflected on this page.
Senator Hyde-Smith cosponsored and supported the United States-Israel Security Authorization Act of 2018, a legislation that supported full funding of security assistance to Israel as outlined in the 2016 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding. She expressed her support for the U.S. embassy move to Jerusalem. Senator Hyde-Smith opposed the Iran nuclear deal and greeted the decision of the administration to abandon the deal.
In our 2018 Senate Candidate Questionnaire, Senator Hyde-Smith responded that she supported the Israel Anti-Boycott Act and the Combating BDS Act of 2017, two pieces of legislation that aim to fight the boycott movement against Israel.
Senator Hyde-Smith did not answer the question about her position on school-sponsored prayers in public schools.
In 2019, Senator Hyde-Smith voted for the Strengthening America’s Middle East Security Act which, among other things strengthens Israel’s security, and allows a state or local government to adopt measures to divest its assets from entities that boycott Israel.
