Bernie Sanders says he won’t support Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader

Résumé détaillé

Sens. Sanders and Elissa Slotkin called for new leadership, but neither proposed an alternative. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland is considering challenging Schumer.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., announced Tuesday he won’t support Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to be majority leader for the next two years after Democrats’ big 2026 victories.

“I personally have known Chuck Schumer for over 30 years, and I like Chuck. [There’s] nobody who works harder than Chuck Schumer. But in my view, the time is now for change, and I will not be supporting Chuck to be re-elected as the Democratic leader,” Sanders said at a news conference.

Sanders, who is in line to chair the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, becomes a high-profile opponent with inside power and grassroots clout when it comes to Schumer’s staying on as leader.

Schumer has spent a decade as caucus leader and is vying for another two years after having led his party to a net pickup of at least seven Senate seats in the midterm elections, with Mississippi and Alaska still counting votes as two more prospects. Senate Democrats won’t elect their new leadership until next month.

The progressive wing of the party has been calling for Schumer to step aside, while some new Democratic senators haven’t committed to support him. He’ll need a majority of the caucus to win another term as leader.

Standing next to Sanders at Tuesday’s news conference was Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., who has similarly called for a change of leadership without backing an alternative candidate.

“I am not actively seeking this job. I am seeking change,” she said. “I’ve been very consistent for a very long time that we need a new generation of leadership. ... It’s important to demonstrate that we’ve heard what people want from this last election.”

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., whom grassroots progressive advocates are drafting to challenge Schumer, said Tuesday he’s still “actively listening” to colleagues about a potential run.

“We should not have a coronation,” Van Hollen told reporters in the Capitol. “We should not support anybody for leader without a very clear plan, and as you know, there…

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