Fight Club (U.S. Senate)

The Fight Club is a left-wing populist faction of the Senate Democratic Caucus in the United States Senate. The Fight Club was founded to combat Democratic leadership and the establishment.

The Fight Club's members include Senators Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Tina Smith of Minnesota, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.[1][2][3]

The Fight Club was created to fight back against the Democratic leadership and establishment, specifically Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Kirsten Gillibrand, who they believed were backing the wrong candidates and were using the wrong strategy to win the 2026 midterm elections.

Purpose

The Senate Fight Club was founded to combat Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Kirsten Gillibrand's 2026 midterm elections strategy.

The New York Times writes that "The 'Fight Club' senators generally lean left of their Democratic peers in Congress, but their differences are less over ideology and more about attitude and political combativeness. They worry that leadership is using a dated playbook and risks dampening the party's energy and desire for new kinds of candidates."[1] They believe that Schumer and Gillibrand's backing of "safe" and "establishment" candidates is the wrong choice for their party. The Fight Club's strategy is to back more populist candidates for the U.S. Senate. Its first move was endorsing Peggy Flanagan in the 2026 United States Senate election in Minnesota over Angie Craig,[1] who reportedly had the private backing of the Democratic Senate leadership.[4]

According to Vanity Fair, the club was also founded to press Congressional Democrats to oppose President Donald Trump more aggressively.[2]

Members

Members (alphabetically left to right)

The Fight Club is composed of seven Democratic senators and one Independent.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lerer, Lisa (November 24, 2025). "Chuck Schumer Faces Pushback from a 'Fight Club' of Senate Democrats". The New York Times. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  2. 1 2 Smith, Chris (December 1, 2025). "Senate Democrats Form a 'Fight Club' to Force Chuck Schumer into Action". Vanity Fair. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  3. ↑ Granger, Lindsey (November 26, 2025). "Senate Dems Revolt Against Schumer, Form 'Fight Club' for New Playbook". The Hill. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Schumer Lines up Behind Centrists in Senate Primaries". Sludge. October 17, 2025. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
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