Washington — Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland announced Thursday that he will challenge Sen. Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader.
“In this election, Americans called on us to unrig an economy rigged against working people & fueled by political corruption. To deliver, we need new leadership. This isn’t about any one person – it’s about answering that call,” Van Hollen said in a post on X. “That’s why I’m running for Senate Majority Leader.”
The decision by Van Hollen, who said earlier this week he was in “listening mode” about running for majority leader, marks the most significant step by a high-profile Democrat to challenge the party’s existing leadership since it decisively won last week’s midterms.
Van Hollen, 67, has been in the Senate since 2017. The Maryland Democrat has gained attention from progressives in recent years. After the 2024 election, he vocally supported restricting weapons shipments to Israel and criticized the Biden administration’s posture toward the war in Gaza. Van Hollen also gained attention when he traveled to El Salvador last year to meet with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran national who lived in Maryland and had been sent to the country’s notorious CECOT prison.
Supporters see Van Hollen as someone who’s willing to speak to the issues progressives hold most dear. Michigan Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed told NPR in an interview this week that Van Hollen is “willing to take risks when it matters,” citing his trip to El Salvador.
Schumer responded to Van Hollen’s announcement in a post on X, saying he welcomes “any discussion about the future of our caucus and the important work ahead.”
“I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together — 55 seats and counting is an amazing result — and I have the votes to continue serving as Democratic Leader,” the New York Democrat said. “I look forward to leading our new Democratic majority and delivering for the American people.”
Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, defended Schumer’s continued leadership at a news conference earlier this week, crediting his “strategic leadership.”
“You will see, despite all the grumblings, enormous gratitude for the hard work he has done to get us to this position,” Gillibrand said.
But some members of the Democratic caucus — including both progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and moderates like Sen.-elect Adam Hamilton of Kansas — have called for new leadership.
“I personally have known Chuck Schumer for over 30 years, and I like Chuck. Nobody who works harder than Chuck Schumer. But in my view, the time is now for change, and I will not be supporting Chuck to be reelected as the Democratic leader,” Sanders said in a news conference this week, adding that the caucus needs to have “a vigorous debate about the direction of the Democratic Party.”
Sanders was flanked by the more moderate Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who said she was “not actively seeking this job” but is “seeking change.”
“Whoever wants my vote is going to have to show me a concrete plan that’s definitively different,” Slotkin said. “I’m a no until and unless I see that from anyone.”
Democrats are expected to hold leadership elections early next month.
