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Aliss Higham

By Aliss Higham

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Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen has announced he will challenge Chuck Schumer for the role of Senate majority leader following the Democrats' sweeping success during the midterm elections.

The Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress as the U.S. heads into the final two years of President Donald Trump's second term. They will hold at least 55 Senate seats after gaining eight, their largest midterm pickup in the chamber since 1986. Alaska is the only remaining Senate race left to be called.

Van Hollen, who has held his Senate seat since 2017, formerly represented Maryland in the House between 2003 and 2017.

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"In this election, the American people called for change. They called for a change from Donald Trump’s disastrous policies—but even bigger than that, a change from the status quo that isn’t working for working people," he said in a statement posted on social media. "It’s now on us to meet this moment, and to do that we need new leadership. This is not about any one person—it’s about answering the call of the American people. That is why I’m running for Senate Majority Leader."

Schumer, the current minority leader who has led the Democratic caucus since 2017, will be running for his third go at majority leader.

“I welcome any discussion about the future of our caucus and the important work ahead,” Schumer wrote on social media, minutes after Van Hollen posted his statement. “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. I look forward to leading our new Democratic majority and delivering for the American people.”

Whoever bags the top job will become the leading spokesperson and strategist for Senate Democrats, setting party priorities, negotiating with the minority leader, and deciding which bills come up for debate and votes.

Senators Chris Van Hollen and Chuck Schumer.

...

Will Schumer Beat Van Hollen?

Democrats are due to vote on their Senate leader on December 1, with a simple majority needed to secure the job. Other candidates could throw their hats into the ring, so it remains to be seen if this will be a straight fight between Schumer and Van Hollen.

For now, Schumer has the advantage, with 13 senators declaring they will back him, while Van Hollen only has two promises of support, according to a tally compiled by The 29th Vote. Given that Van Hollen only announced his intention to run this week, we're likely to see more Democrats come to his side in the run up to the vote.

Betting markets are firmly behind Schumer for the time being. Polymarket is listing 87 percent chance of Schumer winning, leaving only 13 percent for Van Hollen. Kalshi puts Schumer at 83 percent and Van Hollen at 17 percent as of November 13.

Who's Backing Van Hollen?

Two senators and senator-elect's have thrown their weight behind Van Hollen for the top Senate role. Newly elected Michigan Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed and Independent Bernie Sanders, who caucuses with the Democrats, have both said they support Van Hollen's bid.

El-Sayed said on X that he backs Van Hollen because "he leads with courage and experience."

Sanders also offered his support on social media, writing: "American people voted for change. They want a Democratic Party that will stand up to powerful special interests, take on the billionaire class and fight for working families. That is why I am supporting Senator Chris Van Hollen to lead Senate Democrats."

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Van Hollen said in an interview with MS NOW on Thursday that more than 10 senators have pledged their support for him.

"We have a lot of people, but here’s the thing about an election like this: As you say, I’m the underdog,” he said. “I told people I was thinking about it, and so now we are opening up the process, right?"

Who's Backing Schumer?

For now, Schumer has the advantage, with 13 senators publicly endorsing him, including Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York.

Gillibrand credited Schumer with helping the Democrats with their success in the midterms, saying: "I think people have a lot of gratitude towards Senator Schumer and I think he will win any majority leader race he has."

Arizona Senator Ruben Gallego has also publicly said he would back Schumer, saying "when the manager takes you to the World Series, you give him another contract. And this has been a really good election cycle for us."

Senators who have publicly backed Schumer so far are:

Several have indicated they won't be supporting Schumer, but have not publicly backed Van Hollen. They are:

Slotkin signaled that the time is nigh for a change of the Democrat's Senate leader, saying "whoever wants my vote is gonna have to show me a concrete plan that's definitively different."

"We need leadership that’s going to govern for the entirety of the caucus, for folks from blue states, purple states and red states," she continued.

Andrews took a similar position, saying this week that she believes "it’s time for generational change on both sides of the aisle."

Unclear

A handful of notable Democrats have not yet made it clear who they will support, including Cory Booker of New Jersey, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossof of Georgia, as well as Senator-elect James Talarico of Texas. Several have made statements regarding the vote that indicate they are undecided or are withholding publicly announcing their decision for now.

"I think we're at an inflection point in our country," Warnock said. "Voters are demanding that we stand up and fight for them; and so any member of my caucus that feels like they should lead in this moment, I look forward to hearing their case."

Virginia's Mark Warner said while he understands "the need" to "have some of these new members who've won in deeply red states make sure their voices are heard and get them a place in leadership, I would also acknowledge that Chuck Schumer has raised a lot of money and recruited a lot of the very candidates who allowed us to get to what I think will be a 56-seat majority."

These senators are:

No Support Declared

As for the remaining senators, they have not yet publicly made comment. They are:

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Ben Kelly and Emma Lee-Sang

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