US Senator Chris Van Hollen announces bid to replace Schumer as Democratic leader

Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland has announced a bid to become the next Senate Majority Leader, challenging incumbent Democratic leader Chuck Schumer after the party's victories in the US midterm elections.Van Hollen said on Thursday that he was running because “the American people called for change” and argued that Democrats needed new leadership to respond to the election result.“It’s now on us to meet this moment, and to do that we need new leadership,” Van Hollen said in a statement. “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.”The leadership election will be held by secret ballot in early December. It is expected to be the first contested election for the position of Democratic leader in decades, with senators privately debating whether Schumer should continue in the role.Schumer has said he has enough support to retain the position.