Questions swirled on Monday about whether U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal would support Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader next year after the Connecticut Democrat said earlier in the day that his party needs “new energy and ideas.” But when he arrived back in Washington for Senate votes on Monday evening, Blumenthal confirmed he still plans to support Schumer — as he said a week earlier in Hartford. Blumenthal’s comments on Monday morning seemed to suggest he was open to new leadership when Democrats regain the majority in the Senate next year following major victories in the midterm elections. A week earlier, in a post-election press conference, Blumenthal said he’d be supporting Schumer for the top leadership role. But Blumenthal, who’s gearing up to run for a fourth term in 2028, clarified what he meant after a day of confusion about where he stood on Schumer and the need for his party to consider new energy through the lens of Democratic leadership. “I plan to support Chuck Schumer as Senate majority leader, just as I said last week,” Blumenthal told reporters on Monday night when asked to clarify his earlier remarks. “I’m also incredibly excited about the new ideas and energy that new members are going to be bringing to the Senate. We need them.” “I agree with many of them who have said that the Senate has to operate differently,” he continued. “We need to get things done to meet the really crushing and urgent problems of everyday Americans. And the Senate has failed to operate in a way that meets them.” Blumenthal’s comments come as Schumer faces some resistance within the party. Even though Democrats had major victories across the board that knocked off Republicans in some of the reddest states, there’s a vocal segment of the party inside and outside of Washington that wants fresh faces to represent them at all levels in Congress. Schumer currently serves as minority leader, and the New York Democrat previously held the job of majority leader from 2021 to 2025 when the party was in the majority. Debate over Schumer’s future in leadership emerged this week as lawmakers returned to Washington after a month-long recess to focus on campaigning. Democratic leaders in both chambers are facing questions from their caucuses about who will take the helm at a critical time for the party. And it comes amid broader calls for generational change in Congress as Blumenthal, 80, signaled running for reelection in two years. The senator took note of that sentiment as he acknowledged that changes are needed in the Senate. “I expect that Chuck Schumer will be reelected as leader because no one has come forth willing to take the position,” Blumenthal said Monday morning in Hartford before departing for Washington. “But we need to have a conversation about leadership … because we need new energy and ideas.” “It is a very, very tough job, and my focus is going to be on action that meets the needs of everyday Americans,” he said. “I think we need to have a conversation about leadership, but it should not delay our acting to meet those needs of everyday Americans.” But within hours of Blumenthal’s Monday morning press conference, news started circulating about U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a progressive from Maryland, and his potential interest in challenging Schumer. Monday evening, Blumenthal said he’s sticking with Schumer when asked what he’d do if Van Hollen or someone else decides to jump into the race for majority leader. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, of N.Y., center, is flanked by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, of N.Y., second from right, as he speaks during an event with House and Senate Democrats to mark 100 days of President Donald Trump’s term on the steps of the Senate on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. Credit: Mark Schiefelbein / AP Blumenthal said he spoke last Wednesday with Schumer following the Democrats’ midterm rout. “I’m supporting Chuck Schumer ,and I think he will be chosen again as leader,” the Connecticut senator said last Wednesday in Hartford. Questions emerged about Blumenthal’s political future after longtime U.S. Rep. John Larson’s primary defeat in August amid calls for generational change from younger challengers. If Blumenthal runs again and wins reelection to a six-year term, he would be about a month shy of his 83rd birthday when elected. He has dismissed questions surrounding age, saying a couple of months ago that “age is always a state of mind.” “I’m so proud to be your United States senator. Democracy is a fight. I am glad to be in this fight,” Blumenthal said last Tuesday at Connecticut Democrats’ election night watch party in Hartford. “I look forward to continuing to fight and work for the people of Connecticut to 2028 and beyond.” The next day, speaking outside the state Capitol, Blumenthal said he didn’t have an announcement but echoed a similar sentiment. “I’m more excited and energized than ever. And I look forward to fighting and working for the people of Connecticut in this term through 2028 and beyond,” he said. “I don’t have a formal announcement today, but I look forward to being on the ballot in 2028 and continuing to serve the people of Connecticut.” He wasn’t on the ballot this year, but the senior senator from Connecticut has an unrelenting work ethic. After Connecticut’s primaries in August, he suggested he’s not slowing down. And after sweeping victories across the country last week, Blumenthal and his Democratic colleagues will enter the Senate next year back in the majority, with the likelihood of leadership roles on a couple of his committees. Blumenthal said he doesn’t want discussion over the future leadership of the party to distract from Democrats’ focus on addressing what voters wanted out of government. Earlier on Monday, Blumenthal reiterated that he plans to serve as chairman of two committees he sits on: the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and the Homeland Security’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The latter is a role he held when Senate Democrats were last in the majority. As the top Democrat of that panel, he’s already wielded some of his investigatory power, including a recent investigation into a cryptocurrency firm and a series of public forums on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s practices. But as a chair in the majority party, he and other Democrats will regain their subpoena power. Blumenthal already has a framework of what his committee work will look like — corruption investigations that aren’t just focused on the president but members of his administration and corporations that he believes may have benefitted. As the prospect of another impeachment looms next year, he argues that’s not the only form of accountability. And he hopes his work and hearings will start quickly in the new year. “I think impeachment could potentially be a blind alley, futile and frustrating and also a diversion from the focus that we really need, which is on affordability and accountability,” Blumenthal said Monday morning in Hartford. “Accountability doesn’t necessarily mean impeachment. It means uncovering corruption that then can be addressed by prosecution in a future Department of Justice or by other action that the Congress could take, like impeachment.” But before Democrats assume the majority, they will serve at the remaining four work weeks of the year in the minority. Blumenthal and others hope to make an 11th-hour push on policy priorities in the lame-duck session before the end of the year. That includes seeking passage of the Kids Online Safety Act. But they have a limited window and will also contend with must-pass legislation such as government funding and an annual defense policy bill. “The test will be for Republicans — will they work with us in the next 60 days and then afterwards in the next session?” Blumenthal said Monday in Hartford. “We will have the majority then and all we need is a few Republicans to go along with us to meet the needs of healthcare and housing and AI, which needs to be reined in.” Since the 2024 election, when Democrats suffered defeats that relegated them to the minority and out of the White House, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy has been vocal at times when his own party needed to do more. He was pressed earlier this year about whether Schumer should be replaced as leader. He didn’t weigh in on it at the time and said in March of this year that the caucus was united. Murphy was recently discharged from the hospital after experiencing a stroke and will miss several weeks of votes while he recovers at a rehabilitation center. It’s unclear if Schumer will get a challenger and even with some skepticism, he still appears on track to become majority leader again. “Chuck Schumer was the quarterback of a team effort led by Senate Democrats and incredible candidates who ran all across the country,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said at his press conference on Monday. The New York Democrat is looking to become the first Black speaker of the House next year and similarly faces some pushback to his own leadership bid. ...read more read less