Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) confirmed Thursday that he is not planning to challenge Sen. Chuck Schumer for the position of Senate Democratic leader, as he is instead considering a presidential bid in 2028. Van Hollen stated he has been "kicking the tires" on a potential run for the White House.
Van Hollen's name has been previously mentioned as a possible alternative to Schumer, who is the current Senate Democratic leader and up for re-election in 2028. Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-Mich.) reiterated his support for Van Hollen, calling him a potential "amazing Senate majority leader" if he were to pursue that role.
"I don’t think it’s radical to say that the Democratic Senate Caucus, including our new members, should meet and ask whoever is seeking to be the Democratic leader in the Senate what the plan is to answer the call from the American people from Tuesday," Van Hollen told Fox 5 DC. He also emphasized the need for a leader who will prioritize ending the war in Iran and passing an economic agenda to support struggling families.
Van Hollen is the first senator to be publicly floated as a named alternative to Schumer, the Democratic leader from New York.