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Chris Van Hollen challenges Chuck Schumer for Senate Democratic leader in December vote

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Summary

  • Sen. Chris Van Hollen is challenging Sen. Chuck Schumer for Senate Democratic leader in a caucus vote set for Dec. 1, 2026.
  • Democrats won at least 55 Senate seats in the November 2026 midterms and take majority control in January; 28 or 29 votes are needed to win.
  • Van Hollen says he has about 15 votes; Bernie Sanders, Jeff Merkley, and senators-elect Abdul El-Sayed and Peggy Flanagan publicly back him.
  • Schumer says he has the votes to stay leader; 16 senators publicly support him, while Sen. Elissa Slotkin says she will not back Schumer.
  • Some Democrats have privately discussed moving the vote up to before Thanksgiving, which would require waiving caucus rules; Schumer remains favored.

Reactions

  • Sen. John Fetterman called Van Hollen's potential election 'troubling' over his Israel criticism, answering 'Yeah, absolutely' when asked if it is a red line.
  • The Working Families Party and the 600,000-member machinists union wrote to Schumer urging him to step aside and backed Van Hollen.
  • MoveOn cited figures showing 82 percent of its members want Schumer replaced; Indivisible and the Democratic Socialists of America also pressed against him.
  • Schumer's allies called the challenge a distraction and argued progressives are using it for leverage on the filibuster and Medicare for All.
  • Sen. Elissa Slotkin said Democrats need a new generation of leadership and that she is not voting for Schumer.
  • More than 50 Sunrise Movement activists were arrested at a sit-in in Schumer's office on the day Van Hollen announced his bid.

Related

Timeline newest first

  1. Sen. Chris Van Hollen says on Sunday he has about 15 votes in the Senate Democratic leadership race and that the contest is wide open.
  2. Four senators, including Bernie Sanders and Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed, have publicly declared support for Van Hollen; Sen. Elissa Slotkin says she could not support Chuck Schumer.
  3. Van Hollen accuses Chuck Schumer's team of spreading misinformation to scare senators away from backing him; Schumer's team has not released a whip list.
  4. Senate Democrats have privately discussed moving the Dec. 1 leadership vote to before Thanksgiving, which would require waiving caucus rules.
  5. Sixteen senators publicly back Chuck Schumer, and Sen. John Fetterman says he would switch to the Republicans if Van Hollen is elected majority leader.
  6. Sen. John Fetterman says on Fox News it would be 'troubling' if his caucus elects Van Hollen, whose criticism of the Israeli government he cites.
  7. Van Hollen launched a public campaign on Friday with a website and an ad calling Democrats 'too cautious, too rudderless,' and planned a Sunday media blitz.
  8. Sen.-elect Scott Colom says it was 'not accurate' that Schumer recruited him; only Sen.-elect Sherrod Brown among 13 incoming Democrats publicly backs Schumer.
  9. Schumer's allies discuss moving the leadership election into November to lock in his whip-count lead; a confidant calls the challenge a leverage play.
  10. Van Hollen receives a standing ovation addressing a Democratic gathering in Denver and says he wants to go 'toe to toe with the president.'
  11. Some Senate Democrats privately discuss holding the leadership vote the week of Nov. 16; Tammy Baldwin, Jack Reed, and Catherine Cortez Masto publicly back Schumer on Nov. 13.
  12. The Working Families Party writes to Schumer urging him to step aside and endorses Van Hollen; a tally counts 16 senators for Schumer and eight for or leaning to Van Hollen.
  13. Van Hollen announced his challenge on Nov. 12 after a week of speculation; Schumer says he has the votes to continue as Democratic leader.
  14. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani declines at a news conference to endorse Schumer as Senate majority leader.
  15. Van Hollen calls for abolishing the Senate filibuster and rules out a 2028 presidential run.
  16. More than 50 Sunrise Movement activists are arrested at a sit-in in Schumer's office the day Van Hollen announces his challenge.
  17. Schumer maps a 2028 target list aiming at a filibuster-proof 60-seat Senate majority, while Sanders and Slotkin call for a younger generation of leadership.
  18. Sanders says Schumer 'wants to tinker around the edges' and that he would back Van Hollen as an alternative.
  19. Van Hollen has become the preferred alternative for Democrats urging Schumer to step aside, though Senate Democrats broadly expect Schumer to be reelected.
  20. Sanders announces at a Nov. 10 news conference with Elissa Slotkin that he will not support Chuck Schumer for another term as Democratic leader.
  21. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez declines to back Schumer in the leadership vote, saying the choice belongs to Senate members.
  22. The 600,000-member machinists union sends Schumer a letter on Nov. 9 urging him not to seek another term as Senate Democratic leader.
  23. Van Hollen weighs a challenge as Sen. Richard Blumenthal becomes the third sitting Senate Democrat to withhold an endorsement from Schumer.
  24. Van Hollen keeps the door open to a challenge days after ruling it out; Slotkin says she is open to running.

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