Six minutes of news from around the nation.

Scott Colum notches the latest victory for Democrats by winning the US Senate Race in Mississippi, Silicon Valley program shows cash, compassion prevent homelessness, Florida races to preserve Black history as erasure threatens legacy.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service, daily newscast, November the 12th, 2026.

I'm Mike Clifford.

The last Black man to represent Mississippi in the Senate left office in 1881.

Now, the New York Times notes more than a century later, on Wednesday, Scott Cologne, a Democrat, defeated Senator Sidney Hyde-Smith, a Republican of Mississippi, delivering a remarkable upset and becoming the first Black person to be elected to the Senate in his state since the Reconstruction era.

Colum's victory, which came by a slim margin after more than a week of ballot tallying, followed the November 3rd election and puts an exclamation point on the sweeping Democratic victories across the country during this year's midterms.

Meantime, today's affordability crisis is leaving families across the U.S. just one unexpected expense away from eviction.

One nonprofit in Silicon Valley says it's proven that targeted intervention and a touch of compassion can prevent homelessness before it starts.

Destination Home, a public-private partnership, has helped nearly 44,000 people near San Jose remain in their homes by offering quick and flexible cash assistance and ongoing counseling.

CEO Jen Loving says she hopes more communities will see that stabilizing people's housing reduces both suffering and the strain on public services.

Since we started in the most expensive region in America, it doesn't feel like that is going to be too difficult to prove, but we still need to do the very hard work and the research side by side to prove that this kind of model can work anywhere.

A $90 million philanthropic investment will allow 10 urban, rural, and tribal communities to identify who is at risk of homelessness and provide tailored support.

Loving says that could include paying for car repairs so a parent can get to work or ensuring the elderly can stay in the homes they've worked for their entire lives.

I'm Katherine Carley.

And a historical marker unveiled Monday in Florida's capital city honors Lydia G.

Smith, a free black woman who arrived before the Civil War and later opened a school for black kids.

But the question remains about whether other trailblazers are given their proper due.

It's the 10th marker installed this year by the Tallahassee Historical Society as part of the city's bicentennial projects.

Society President Bob Holliday says Smith accomplished much, despite the limited opportunities available to black women at the time.

She accomplished a great deal in a time in which she had a lot of headwinds against her.

Leon County was almost the very definition of what historians would call a slave society.

I'm Tramiel Gomes.

In Tampa, the city approved a land exchange to help preserve the historic Zion Cemetery.

This is Public News Service. 23% of adults in California, more than 7 million people, are family caregivers, that's according to data from AARP.

Now advocates are speaking out on how hard it is for low-income seniors to afford long-term care and in-home assistance.

Nationally, 130 million Americans provide care to a family member or loved one.

Anika Leon-Weil, a single mom from Santa Cruz, spent six years taking care of her late mother who suffered from Alzheimer's disease.

And she says finding a memory care facility that takes Medi-Cal was difficult.

There was no coverage for any kind of care for someone with Alzheimer's disease.

The most affordable care that we could find was around $7,000 a month.

And it also forced her to move out of her home.

She says the impending cuts to Medi-Cal are straining a system that is already wholly inadequate to address the needs of millions of older Californians, putting a burden on families who are already struggling to pay for housing, food, gas and health care.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

And severe weather washed out roads on Arizona's tribal lands just days before the November election.

Those living on reservations already face geographical challenges when trying to cast a ballot in Arizona, which can include having no physical address, long distances to reach polling places, or a lack of transportation.

Adding to the difficulty, several inches of rain fell prior to the November 3rd election on the Navajo and Hopi reservations, washing out roads and bridges.

But Arizona Native Vote Executive Director Janie Parrish says workers were ready, and many of them stepped in to help well before Election Day.

Early voting, educating people on tracking their ballot, educating people about their signatures, getting their families to do the same, and encouraging people to check their family's status, trying to do as much up front as we can, even giving folks rides to early voting locations.

I'm Mark Moran.

Finally, in a world where people often take in stories through short online videos, A Minnesota organization is getting media consumers reacquainted with a traditional platform.

The Minnesota Humanities Center is out with its debut edition of 10,000 Threads, a magazine offering human interest stories like a farmer and educator who hosts independent writing workshops or a hub in St.

Paul that allows curious people to learn about East African culture.

MHC's Ali Severson says they wanted this approach to capture the depth of people around the state trying to build social connections.

10,000 Threads is supposed to be an open love letter to the people of Minnesota.

It's about weaving together the stories of Minnesota's people, and it's all about to help us imagine and create and ensure a vibrant and thriving state.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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