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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is confident that Democrats will win the Senate, but whether they support him as leader remains to be seen.
Schumer, who has led the Senate Democratic Caucus since 2017, believes that Democrats have “wind in our sails” heading into what some Republicans fear could be a brutal midterm election in November.
And win or lose, he plans to retain his spot as the top Democrat in the Senate.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., during a news conference following Senate Democrat policy luncheons at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., March 3, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I am running for re-election for leader,” Schumer told Politico. “Period.”
But some of his own candidates on the trail running in elections that could shape the balance of power in the Senate aren’t keen on supporting him to once again lead Senate Democrats since he took the mantle from his friend and mentor, the late Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Adam Hamilton, who has gained enough ground on incumbent Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., in ruby-red Kansas to make it a toss-up race, reiterated this week that he won’t support Schumer for leader in either a majority or minority.
“And no disrespect for him at all, it’s just that I think we need new ideas,” Hamilton told CBS News. “We need new ideas, we need fresh leadership. I support term limits. I support age limits, and I just think there’s a time where we need to have new and fresh leadership coming in, and I think this is one of those times.”
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He’s not alone, either. Both Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in Minnesota have been noncommittal — during and after their primary victories earlier this year — with their support of Schumer, despite both welcoming dollars from the Senate Majority PAC, the political action committee closely aligned with the Democratic leader.
Digital reached out to both campaigns for comment.
Since the 2024 election, when Schumer lost the Senate, Democrats have quietly questioned a new path in leadership. Those conversations emerged twice last year — when Schumer refused to allow a shutdown early in President Donald Trump’s term, and when he was unable to prevent Democrats from jumping ship to end the longest full government shutdown in history.
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Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., talks to reporters as he heads for a vote at the U.S. Capitol on June 1, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)
While many Democratic senators won’t publicly engage with the topic of replacing Schumer, Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., did. Earlier this year she argued that Democrats were still reeling from the 2024 election, and that “every day, there’s a debate within the party about the path forward.”
“That’s why I believe we need significant new leadership,” Slotkin said. “The old models are no longer working, and that includes the Democratic Party.”
One lawmaker has emerged as a possible replacement who has the backing of progressives, including El-Sayed: Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.
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Van Hollen declined to say whether he would mount a bid against Schumer, but said before leaving Washington, D.C., last month that the midterms were “all I am focused on.”
Other Democrats aren’t quick to weigh in, either. When asked if retaking the upper chamber could strengthen Schumer’s hand, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., declined to say.
“I’m not doing those questions now,” Murphy said.
