U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has thrown the proverbial hat in the ring, hoping to land the job of Democratic Senate Majority Leader in the upcoming session of the United States Congress.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Van Hollen said:
“In this election, the American people called for change. They called for a change from Donald Trump’s disastrous policies – but even bigger than that, a change from the status quo that isn’t working for working people.
He continued:
“It’s now on us to meet this moment, and to do that we need new leadership. This is not about any one person – it’s about answering the call of the American people. That is why I’m running for Senate Majority Leader.”
U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is the current Democratic Leader in the Senate. He responded to the announcement by stating:
“I welcome any discussion about the future of our caucus and the important work ahead. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together — 55 seats and counting is an amazing result — and I have the votes to continue serving as Democratic Leader.”
Van Hollen is scheduled to hold a press conference Friday from Denver at 11:30 a.m. where he will answer questions. This article will be updated with his remarks.
Van Hollen will need a simple majority of the votes of fellow senators to win. Specifically, that could be 28 or 29 votes depending on the outcome of the Senate race in Alaska.
