Maryland’s Van Hollen drops White House plans to focus on Senate’s top job

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen said Friday he will no longer consider a run for the White House, echoing his call for a change in Democratic leadership at an important moment in American history.

Van Hollen, 67, has announced he will challenge New York Sen. Chuck Schumer to be majority leader in the next Congress. Speaking outside of a Democratic Party conference in Denver, Van Hollen said the sweeping midterm wins show voters want change.

“It’s important to give Senate Democrats a choice,” he said. “That’s what we just gave voters, all over the country: a choice. They chose change, and I think that the Democratic caucus needs to open to new ideas, a different way of governing, and a different way of conducting and approaching politics.”

Just about a week ago, Van Hollen said he wasn’t interested in the Senate’s top job and instead focused on exploring a possible 2028 presidential run. His perspective changed, he said, as Democrats flipped long-shot seats in states like Texas, Ohio, Michigan and Maine.

Van Hollen has conceded that he’s the underdog in the race, but he said Thursday on MSNow that he has support from at least 10 senators, needing 29 of the expected 56 Democratic senators — with an Alaska race still uncalled — to win. He said he wants to defund the war in Iran as a means to end it, stamp out political corruption, and improve the economic conditions at home.

“We can’t go back to business as usual in the United State’s Senate,” he said. “We need to listen to the American people.”

Schumer, meanwhile, has signaled that he won’t go quietly, particularly after the Democrats’ big Senate wins in the midterms.

“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,” he posted online.

If Van Hollen is successful, it could bode well for Maryland, says Niambi Carter, an associate professor at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

“[The Senate Majority Leader has] a lot of power in setting priorities,” she said. “In addition to setting the agenda or the stage for Democrats to be successful legislatively is to fast track the priorities for their constituents. So for the state of Maryland this could be a boon.”

Carter mentioned the “real infrastructure needs” that could benefit from Van Hollen’s influence: the Key Bridge; the education system, which “has a deep deficit,” and western Maryland, which “is still recovering from the floods.”

“We can also think about the potential to drive more business and attention to the state, particularly as people wish to get on Senator Van Hollen’s docket,” she said. “It also means that on every decision legislatively that’s going to be made coming out of that body. He is going to be at every single conversation so that also means that Maryland has some inside track.”

Banner reporter John-John Williams IV contributed to this article.