Dem Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland boasted Sunday he has a “very open lane” to unseat Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, claiming some colleagues previously behind the New York pol now back him.
“We’re about 15 and growing,” Van Hollen told ABC’s “This Week” when asked how many votes he had lined up for his bid to lead Senate Democrats.
The Maryland senator accused Schumer’s allies of spreading “a lot of misinformation” about the leadership race while trying to scare off his potential supporters.
Van Hollen also claimed that Schumer’s team circulated a list of senators expected to back the incumbent leader — but that it included lawmakers who have already pledged their support to Van Hollen.
“I can tell you that a number of those people on that list have actually committed to voting for me, and the others are very open to the idea of change,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Schumer, who has led the Senate Democrats since 2017, has maintained that he has the votes to keep his leadership post.
But Van Hollen argued that Democrats need a fresh approach even after their successful performance in the midterm elections, saying voters rejected President Trump’s policies but have not yet fully embraced the Democratic Party.
“They haven’t fully hired the Democrats. We’re given a chance. We need to earn people’s trust,” he told ABC’s Martha Raddatz.
The Maryland senator said the party cannot simply return to “business as usual” and should instead focus on economic populism, arguing that Democratic leaders need to take on an economy “rigged in favor of the very wealthy” and fueled by political corruption.
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His challenge has drawn skepticism from some Democrats, including Sen. Angus King of Maine, who has questioned why the party would replace its leader after winning the midterms.
Van Hollen dismissed suggestions that his candidacy was merely an effort by progressives to pressure Schumer into adopting a more liberal agenda, including Medicare for All and eliminating the legislative filibuster.
On the filibuster, Van Hollen said he would not immediately push to eliminate the Senate rule if elected leader but maintained that it should eventually be reformed.
He called the rule “undemocratic” because it allows a minority of senators to block legislation supported by a majority. But he also insisted any change should be discussed with the full Democratic caucus.
The Dem Senate leadership election is scheduled for Dec. 1, although Van Hollen accused Schumer’s allies of trying to move up the vote to short-circuit debate over the contest.
“If they really believed they were ahead, they wouldn’t be trying to move up the elections,” he said.
