Senator Chris Van Hollen announced Thursday his candidacy to compete with Chuck Schumer for the position of Democratic Majority Leader in the US Senate, pledging to renew the leadership of the upper chamber of Congress in the wake of the Democrats' landslide victory in the midterm elections.
This announcement, issued by the progressive-minded senator, paves the way for internal competition within the party, just days after Democrats regained control of both chambers of Congress.
“In this election, Americans called on us to reform an economy that has been rigged against workers and fueled by political corruption,” Van Hollen, 67, wrote on the X platform. To achieve this, we need new leadership.” He added, "For this reason, I announce my candidacy for the position of Senate Majority Leader."
Chuck Schumer, 75, who has long served as the Democratic leader in the Senate, has faced calls from some members of his party to step down and make room for new leadership, after the party regained control of the 100-seat chamber in the November 3 elections.
Van Hollen is the first senator to publicly challenge Schumer, and he has the support of some prominent progressive figures within the party. Senator Bernie Sanders, a left-leaning independent who is politically aligned with the Democrats, said this week that he would not support Schumer continuing in office. The newly elected Senator from Michigan, Abdel Rahman Al-Sayed, also announced on the X platform his support for Van Hollen.
For his part, Schumer welcomed the opening of a discussion about the future of the party, but at the same time he stressed, saying, “I have the necessary votes to continue in my role as leader of the Democrats.” “I look forward to leading our new Democratic majority and fulfilling the aspirations of the American people,” he wrote on the X platform.
The “Calci” forecasting platform has ended its cooperation with Donald Trump Jr., justifying the matter by the existence of financial ties between the US President’s son and the competing “PolyMarket” platform.
According to American media reports published Thursday, a Calci spokesman said in a statement: “We mutually agreed to end Donald Trump Jr.’s advisory role after his company made a significant investment in a competing company last summer.”
He added: “We are grateful for his contributions in helping us market the Kalshi platform to attract more customers.”
Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of the US President, joined Calci in January 2025 as a “strategic advisor.”
His activities in the forecast markets are part of multiple business activities of the Donald Trump family since the latter assumed the presidency in 2025.
In August 2026, Polymarket announced that Trump Jr. had joined its advisory board, following a “strategic investment” made by 1789 Capital, in which Trump Jr. is a partner.
American media reported that 1789 Capital invested $300 million in Polymarket in August 2026, in addition to a previous investment of $200 million in the company itself.
The Calcci and Polymarket platforms dominate the growing predictions market in the United States, where customers can bet on the results of sporting events, elections, financial markets, and more.
In late July, New York State filed a lawsuit against Calci, accusing it of running illegal gambling operations.
New York State Attorney General Letitia James said the state's gambling laws are intended to protect minors from participating in betting and help combat gambling addiction.
“Kalshi” faces similar legal challenges in several American states, where regulatory bodies concerned with the gambling sector have issued orders to stop the platform’s activities or filed lawsuits accusing it of running a gambling business without a license.
For its part, the company confirms that its activities do not fall under the heading of gambling, but rather are closer to trading contracts linked to the results of events, as it allows individuals to bet on questions with specific answers of “yes” or “no.”
In April, US prosecutors filed criminal charges against an American soldier who allegedly made profits exceeding $400,000 through the “PolyMarket” platform by using confidential information to bet on an American operation to arrest former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he wants to “end the Cuba issue” before leaving office.
In response to a question about the possibility of using military force to “liberate Cuba,” Trump stated during an interview with radio personality Hugh Hewitt that he wanted to “complete the Cuban file before leaving office,” stressing that he would “certainly consider” the option of military intervention.
Trump continued: “We are monitoring the situation closely. Conditions there are very bad. "It's basically a failed place, a failed state, or whatever you want to call it."
Trump's term is scheduled to end in January 2029.
The US government recently imposed a new package of sanctions on Cuba, exacerbating the economic and energy crises that have been plaguing the country for years, as well as increasing the severity of the humanitarian crisis in this Caribbean country with a population of 9.4 million people.
Washington expressed its expectation that there will be a shift in Cuba's political and economic path, and that its government will distance itself from major powers such as China and Russia, based on American national security considerations.
