6 stories tracked · from 20 outlets · last coverage 2026-11-13 · ranked by independent sources, not by us
NBC News' From the Politics Desk newsletter focuses on newly elected Senate Democrats. In this edition, Kristen Welker examines the first major decision facing the incoming class of Democratic senators.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland announced Thursday that he will run for Senate majority leader in the next Congress, challenging Democratic leader Chuck Schumer after Democrats' midterm election sweep and calling for "new leadership" ahead of a Dec. 1 secret-ballot leadership election, according to Axios. The New York Times reports that Schumer says he has the votes to win, while Fox News reports that Van Hollen accused Schumer of siding with AIPAC.
The Hill reports that a group of Senate Democrats is weighing whether to use a December government funding deadline as leverage to force the Trump administration to end the war in Iran. According to The Hill, party leaders have not yet decided whether to risk a shutdown, but interest in taking action from both progressives and moderates could complicate the process.
Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado is pressing Trump administration intelligence and commerce officials about their investigation into cloud computing and data center firm Megaspeed, following reports that the Commerce Department paused its investigation into the company last year. The Hill links the inquiry to allegations involving Alice Huang.
Senate Democrats are preparing for a debate over whether Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer should continue to lead their caucus amid growing calls for new leadership, according to The Washington Times. The outlet reports that no senator has yet stepped forward to challenge him.
Sen. Raphael Warnock declined to say whether he would back Sen. Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader in a radio interview, while Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elissa Slotkin said they would not support Schumer's bid for leadership of the incoming Democratic majority. NBC News reports that neither Sanders nor Slotkin proposed an alternative, while Sen. Chris Van Hollen is considering a challenge to Schumer.
