Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) found himself under intense scrutiny amid questions about whether he was strong enough to counter a more assertive second Trump administration. While the spotlight has since faded a bit, the angst is now being felt in the Democrats’ 2026 primary elections.
Whether Schumer should continue in his role as the Senate’s top Democrat and Schumer’s continued role as the Senate’s top Democrat after breaking with most in his party over last month’s government funding standoff is emerging as a key issue in Democratic primary contests. Some frustrated Democrats want new leadership and bolder opposition to the Republican agenda.
In Michigan, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, a candidate vying to succeed the retiring Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), has already made her stance clear: she won’t back Schumer for leadership. Meanwhile, former Detroit Health Director Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive, who has launched a campaign for Peters’s seat has been vague about whether he’ll back Schumer.
“Anybody who tells you that they’re going to unilaterally oppose one potential candidate without knowing who the alternative is, is either unnuanced or unsophisticated,” El-Sayed said in an interview with Politico. “So I want to know who is available, who is actively seeking the leadership. I’ll make a decision from there.”’
Iowa state Rep. J.D. Scholten has expressed interest in challenging Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) next year and has spoken out against Schumer’s leadership.
“While I’m considering running, I’m just wondering if we are going to meet this moment,” Scholten said in an interview with NOTUS. “We’re not doing great under Schumer’s leadership, especially in the Midwestern states.”
Other candidates have made veiled references to their frustration with the Senate Democratic leader. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH) earlier this month entered the race to replace retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) with a video that casts him as a candidate prepared to challenge President Donald Trump and Republicans head-on, a possible reference to what many Democrats view as the compromises made by Schumer.
“I do expect that there will be some primary challenges – I do expect that there will be in some places, a shifting of the political tectonic plates, and I do expect that some incumbents may be in a fight for survival in the primary,” said Antjuan Seawright, a veteran Democratic strategist.
Seawright and other Democratic operatives believe recent intraparty disputes are poorly timed and counterproductive, warning that they risk drowning out Democratic messaging and shifting focus away from Republican missteps.
“There is very little oxygen to go around politically, and the more we have an echo chamber or amplification of that – the less the American people will hear about the failures of the Trump administration, House Republicans, Senate Republicans,” Seawright said. “The more bickering means they’ll hear less about the accountability measures that Democrats are highlighting in the work we are doing and showing the American people what we are for.”
During the 2022 midterm elections, several Republicans publicly questioned or distanced themselves from then-Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY). Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), then the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, challenged McConnell following the GOP’s underwhelming performance in the midterm elections. Although McConnell retained his position with a 37–10 vote, Scott’s actions highlighted internal divisions within the GOP between those establishment-aligned and others in the Trump-aligned populist wing.
JD Vance, who is now the vice president, did not directly attack McConnell during his 2022 campaign for Senate in Ohio but leaned into anti-establishment messaging. Following the election, Vance urged the GOP to rethink its leadership and direction and criticized McConnell’s approach.
McConnell stepped down from his leadership role at the end of the last Congress.
Seawright cautioned fellow Democrats against following a similar playbook as Republicans, quipping “our homework is not graded the same as them.”
“[Republicans] can get away with stuff that we can’t get away with politically, from a governing standpoint and from a policy perspective, I think that candidates and causes need to understand that as we usher away into the 2025 and 2026 election cycle,” he explained.
“Just because they were successful at it doesn’t mean that we will find the same kind of success. I think it always happens that things end up backfiring for us that may work for them.”
The Democrats’ internal debates have highlighted a strategic shift among some members who believe that openly criticizing Schumer could energize their base and demonstrate responsiveness to constituent concerns.
“I think it’s fair to challenge party leadership publicly and hold our leaders accountable,” said a national Democratic strategist, speaking on the condition of anonymity to reflect candidly on the situation. “I think the sooner we battle this out, the better for the party. I applaud the candidates who are coming out the gate and making their voices heard.”
The approach could carry risks for some primary candidates, as Schumer and Senate leadership play an influential role in steering the party’s campaign strategy. The New York senator is deeply involved in recruiting candidates, shaping national messaging, and working closely with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on fundraising and resource deployment. He draws on his national stature and extensive donor network to channel support into key battlegrounds, with strategic decisions that help determine which candidates gain momentum and how Democrats position themselves in competitive races across the country.
“You don’t want to bite the hand that feeds you,” a different Democratic official said. “I don’t believe Schumer is going anywhere, so what’s the point of all this,” the person asked rhetorically.
Jon Reinish, a New York-based Democratic strategist, argued that going after Schumer risks reinforcing a broader party weakness—getting trapped in insider, Washington-focused narratives instead of engaging voters on issues that resonate locally.
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“If you’re a candidate who is 35 or 40 years old and barnstorming your state, talking about Chuck Schumer, like no, that is kind of playing into the very problem that Democrats have had, which is, we can’t get out of the beltway. Don’t have beltway conversations,” Reinish said.
“Voters want to be confident in you that you are going to be their fighter on lowering prices, on housing, on civil liberties, but if you walk in and talk about Chuck Schumer – people are not concerned in their daily lives about Chuck Schumer, that is so inside baseball,” he added.