Schumer expects re-election as Senate Democrats' leader after midterm wins

Republican strategist says Senate losses will linger through 2032

After two government shutdowns, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer made clear he expects to be re-elected as the Senate Democrats’ leader in the next Congress, this time in the majority, after Democrats took control of both the House and Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections. The Associated Press projected that Democrats would succeed in their longshot effort to win back the Senate — not just by flipping a few seats, but by flipping at least seven — and Democrats will have at least 54 seats in the next Senate, with Alaska and Mississippi still too close to call. Schumer, a 75-year-old New York Democrat, called the result one achieved “against all odds.”

In a courtyard of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee near Capitol Hill late Tuesday night, Schumer greeted journalists and staffers after the AP projection of a Democratic Senate majority. “Is this a night?!” he asked, adding, “Oh man! Wow, wow, wow!” On Wednesday morning, he posted a photo of himself cooking on his backyard grill, with photos of defeated Republicans among the hot dogs and burgers.

Last spring, progressives and activists had bombarded Schumer with calls to resign and primary threats after he voted with a small group of other senators who caucus with Democrats to keep the government open. The backlash was profound enough that Schumer postponed a planned book tour because of security concerns, and progressive critics cast the 75-year-old senator as too old-school and out of touch with voters consumed by anger at President Trump.

Producing the wins required Schumer and his left flank to set aside differences to serve the larger goal of winning, with the party united around affordability and fighting corruption. A super PAC aligned with Schumer put about $70 million into the Michigan race of Abdul El-Sayed, the Democrat who defeated a Schumer-picked primary candidate. Rebecca Katz, a Democratic strategist who advised El-Sayed’s campaign, compared the alliance to a “shotgun marriage” in which both parts of the party “understood the assignment” of flipping the Senate. Katz said, speaking about Schumer and Senate Democratic leadership, “my hope is that they will think a little differently about what is possible.”

Schumer described the coalition as broad rather than settled. “We’re a big tent party,” he said, noting that Democratic candidates across the spectrum all shared remarkably similar messages focused on reducing costs. “You talk about it differently in Maine than you talk about it in Kansas, but it was all the same message,” he said. “And we will be united as a caucus focusing on those issues.”

Several of the newly elected senators have said they will not vote for him as leader. Sen.-elect Troy Jackson of Maine affirmed that position this week. “I already said that I told Sen. Schumer that I’m going to support somebody else. So it’s no different now,” Jackson said on the eve of his victory. Jackson said that if Schumer wins election as Democratic leader, he would push him to embrace and advance “Medicare for All.” Sen.-elects Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, Juliana Stratton of Illinois and Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota have also said they will not back Schumer. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said the caucus needs a “robust discussion” about Democrats’ goals and how to achieve them before committing to anyone as leader.

The contest will be settled in a secret ballot vote later this year. Schumer has not addressed his plans beyond the next two years, including whether he will run again for his seat in 2028. “This isn’t about me,” he said on Wednesday.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut defended Schumer’s standing, saying no one should doubt his job security. Blumenthal called him the “principal architect” of Democrats’ historic victory, citing his candidate recruitment, fundraising and messaging focus on costs and corruption. “I think he’s very much to be credited and the caucus realizes it,” he said.

Asked how he would handle a possible push from progressive Democrats to impeach Trump, Schumer said the victorious party’s No. 1 focus has to be addressing high costs and going after corruption. “Look, there was such rampant corruption, there has to be some investigations, but we’re not going to take our eye off the ball,” he said.

Republican strategists responded to the scale of the wins by raising the alarm that their party could face three daunting election cycles ahead. Steven Law, who helped build Republican Senate majorities at the helm of the Senate Leadership Fund super PAC when Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was GOP leader, said: “You can’t deny this is an historic and catastrophic loss for the Republican Party that will take years to dig out of.” Law added: “Just the Senate losses alone will be with us through 2032, if not longer.”

Schumer’s longtime political ally JB Poersch, president of Senate Majority PAC, a Schumer-linked super PAC that spent heavily in key Senate races, was on hand for the victory. After wrapping up his Election Night remarks to the press, Schumer, his voice shaking with emotion, thanked his staff and bear-hugged Poersch. “I can’t believe it,” Schumer said, still in awe. “It’s amazing.” Twenty years ago, Poersch had been executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, with Schumer as chairman, when Democrats captured six Republican-held seats to win the Senate majority in 2006. Asked whether the party’s overperformance on a tough Senate map vindicated Schumer, Poersch said he would let others judge if that was the right term. “You just gotta stay on the horse,” he said. “Schumer never fell off the horse. He stays on the horse.”

Ahead in the new Congress are political fights that could strain Democrats’ unity: funding the government, restoring healthcare subsidies and possible impeachments. Whether the party’s centrist and progressive wings can find a durable accord on those issues remains an open question.