Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland announced on Thursday that he will challenge Sen. Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader, opening a rare contested race for the Democratic leadership just over a week after the party won control of the chamber in the midterm elections.
Van Hollen, 67, made his run official in an interview with MS NOW host Jen Psaki. He said the scale of the Democratic victory — the party flipped eight seats and will hold the majority when the new Congress convenes in January — gives Democrats "a mandate and the votes to do big things."
"This is not about any one individual, but it is about answering the call of the American people," Van Hollen said, describing his candidacy as a response to what he called a "huge outburst of democracy" in the midterms. He said voters had called for "a change from the status quo that isn't working for working people."
Schumer, 75, has led Senate Democrats since 2017 and moved quickly to defend his position. In a statement on Thursday, he said: "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."
The contest will be decided by secret ballot on December 1, giving activists and outside groups nearly three weeks to lobby senators. It is the first contested race for Senate Democratic leader in decades, and its outcome will shape the party's direction over the final two years of President Donald Trump's administration and its identity heading into the 2028 presidential election.
Van Hollen acknowledged he is an underdog but said the race is "very much in flux" after conversations with colleagues. Pressed by Psaki about how many commitments he had, he said he had "more than 10" and expressed confidence his support could grow now that colleagues know he is running.
He quickly won the backing of one incoming Democratic freshman, Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, who had suggested for weeks that he could support Van Hollen if he ran. At least six Democratic senators-elect have said they will not support Schumer, though Schumer has more public backers than Van Hollen at this stage and needs only a majority of the caucus to prevail.
Van Hollen's interest in the post had been building for days. He told CNN on Saturday that seeking the job was "not my focus," noting he was also interested in running for president, and as of Thursday afternoon he said he was "still actively listening to members." He has served in Congress for more than two decades, including 14 years in the House before joining the Senate in 2017, and chaired the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from 2017 to 2019.
