Van Hollen believes Democrats should abolish Senate filibuster, rules out 2028 presidential bid

Maryland Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who is challenging Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to become the chamber's top Democrat in the next Congress, said Friday that he believes his party should abolish the filibuster next year. 

Van Hollen announced Thursday that he was seeking the top position in the Senate when Democrats take over the chamber next year after several progressives, including Michigan Democratic Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed, urged him to do so.

The senator told a Denver audience that he believes the filibuster is antidemocratic and that the chamber should eliminate the filibuster so that a vote just takes a simple majority.

“My personal opinion is that we need democracy in the United States Senate and that means allowing ultimately a majority of senators to answer the call of the American people, so that means 51 votes,” Van Hollen said.

“My personal view has been all along that the filibuster is an antidemocratic provision," he continued. "It’s not in our Constitution. It was put in there by senators to enhance their power over the power of the people. 

“My view is we need to have a system where you have lots of debate, lots of debate, but at the end of the day, a majority reflecting the will of the people should be able to hold a view on an important measure,” he added. “This is an issue that I think we need to talk to the caucus about.”

The Democrat also said he has opted out of running for president in 2028, though the 67-year-old senator could still pursue a run in 2032.

Van Hollen said he was running for Senate Majority Leader against Schumer because the American people called for change in both chambers, after Democrats flipped control of both. 

"They called for a change from Donald Trump’s disastrous policies — but even bigger than that, a change from the status quo that isn’t working for working people," he said in a statement. “It’s now on us to meet this moment, and to do that we need new leadership. 

"This is not about any one person — it’s about answering the call of the American people," he continued. "That is why I’m running for Senate Majority Leader."

No other candidate has emerged so far to challenge Van Hollen and Schumer for the post.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.