Schumer’s Victory Lap Hits Roadblock Inside His Own Party

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) is considering a challenge to Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader, saying Democrats should not give their longtime leader a “coronation” after winning control of the chamber. 

Van Hollen told reporters Monday that he is in “listening mode” about a possible leadership bid and wants Democrats to discuss how they will use their majority before choosing who will lead it. 

“What I’ve said from the very beginning is we shouldn’t have a coronation,” Van Hollen said. “I’m in listening mode and haven’t shut the door.”

Van Hollen’s name has gained traction among some of the Democrats entering the Senate next year. Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI) has publicly endorsed him for the leadership position, saying last week that Van Hollen would be an “amazing Senate majority leader.”

“I am for Chris Van Hollen. If he decides he wants to be Senate Majority Leader, I think he’d be amazing at the job,” El-Sayed said.

Schumer has led Senate Democrats for nearly a decade, serving as majority leader from 2021 to 2025. The party will regain its majority when the next Congress begins in January.

Asked on a recent episode of the New York Times’ “The Daily” podcast whether he anticipated a leadership challenge, he tersely answered, “No.”

But other Democrats have questioned his leadership. Sen.-elect Adam Hamilton of Kansas told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that Schumer was a polarizing figure in his state. 

“I mean no disrespect for Chuck Schumer,” Hamilton said. “And I’ve told him that as well. But I think, at least where I live in Kansas, he is kind of a polarizing figure.”

Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) has declined to rule out her own leadership ambitions and said Monday she would not support a candidate who could not explain a concrete plan for the party’s first 100 days in power. She also met with Van Hollen that day. 

“I think a lot of members are calling each other and talking to each other and saying the same thing,” Slotkin said, according to Politico.

Van Hollen has called for ending the war in Iran, pursuing an economic agenda focused on affordability, and investigating what he describes as corruption in the Trump administration.

“You can certainly legislate and hold people accountable and, yes, investigate,” Van Hollen told Fox 5. “These are not mutually exclusive things.”

Schumer retains support from Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).

“I plan to continue to support Schumer just as I have, but I’m also very excited about the new ideas and energy that the new members will bring,” Blumenthal said, per Politico. “We need them and we need to listen to them and the Senate needs to change the way it operates.”

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