A pack of Democratic senators and Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders are forming a coalition against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and his midterm strategy.
The group, dubbed the “Fight Club,” includes Sanders and Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Tina Smith of Minnesota, according to the New York Times (NYT). In addition to Schumer, the coalition’s ire is also aimed at the Senate Democratic Leader’s Empire State colleague, New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who heads the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), Senate Democrats’ campaign arm.
The Fight Club, whose existence was first reported by the NYT, seeks to directly challenge the way Schumer and Gillibrand have chosen and recruited Democratic Senate candidates, and argues their picks are more aligned with the party establishment. Schumer angered the party’s left-wing base after repeatedly declining to endorse New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, an avowed socialist aligned with the Sanders and Democrats’ left-flank, including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
The group is discussing joint-fundraising efforts, lending their donor lists to candidates, offering endorsements and making appearances on the campaign trail, according to the NYT. They aim to focus on primaries for open seats in Maine, Michigan and Minnesota, where they believe leadership is pushing for Gov. Janet Mills, Rep. Haley Stevens and Rep. Angie Craig, respectively.
Trump narrowly won Michigan in the 2024 presidential election, but he lost Maine and Minnesota.
The Fight Club, apart from Smith, publicly endorsed Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan for the Senate seat from which Smith is retiring. The Minnesota Senator has said she will not endorse a candidate in the primary race to succeed her.
In addition to Flanagan, Sanders prominently supports a pair of left-wing candidates, former public health official Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan and oyster farmer Graham Platner in Maine. Platner has notably joined other Democratic candidates in calling for Schumer’s ouster as Senate Democratic Leader.
Stevens also declined to answer whether she would vote for Schumer to lead the party if she was elected to the Senate.
Democratic Sens. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico have also joined in some of the Fight Club’s actions, according to the NYT. Markey is currently facing a competitive 2026 Democratic primary challenge from Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton.
Alex Nguyen, a spokesperson for Schumer, told the NYT in a statement, “Our North Star is winning the Senate Majority in 2026 and any decision is made to achieve that goal.”
Schumer’s approval ratings are their lowest in decades, according to a recent Siena Poll, and Democrats have repeatedly broken ranks to criticize the minority leader’s decisions.
In March, Schumer wrangled together enough Democrats to pass a stopgap funding bill and avert a government shutdown, infuriating his base who were hoping to make a stand against the Trump administration. Schumer again met the ire of his party when he failed to keep his caucus together, resulting in eight senators crossing the aisle to reopen the government after a 43-day shutdown — although Schumer himself still voted with the majority of his caucus to reject the shutdown-ending deal.
Ocasio-Cortez has sidestepped questions about the possibility of challenging Schumer in 2028 for years, but calls for her to mount a primary challenge to him have increased as public criticism of the Democratic leader mounts. Polls have also shown her with double-digit leads over the longtime senator.
When she was asked in November if she would potentially run against Schumer in 2028, she punted the question, telling reporters, “That is years from now.”
Sens. Gillibrand, Warren, Sanders, Van Hollen, Murphy, Smith, Markey, Merkley and Heinrich all did not respond to requests for comment by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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