Chris Van Hollen

Chris Van Hollen
Official portrait, 2017
United States Senator from Maryland
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2017 Serving with Ben Cardin
Preceded by	Barbara Mikulski
Chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee
In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019
Leader	Chuck Schumer
Preceded by	Jon Tester
Succeeded by	Catherine Cortez Masto
House Democratic Assistant to the Leader
In office January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2011
Leader	Nancy Pelosi
Preceded by	Xavier Becerra
Succeeded by	Jim Clyburn (Assistant Democratic Leader)
Chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2011
Leader	Nancy Pelosi
Preceded by	Rahm Emanuel
Succeeded by	Steve Israel
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 8th district
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2017
Preceded by	Connie Morella
Succeeded by	Jamie Raskin
Member of the Maryland Senate from the 18th district
In office January 11, 1995 – January 8, 2003
Preceded by	Patricia Sher
Succeeded by	Sharon M. Grosfeld
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates from the 18th district
In office January 9, 1991 – January 11, 1995
Preceded by	Patricia Sher Lawrence Wiser
Succeeded by	Sharon Grosfeld
Personal details
Born	Christopher Van Hollen Jr. (1959-01-10) January 10, 1959 (age 65) Karachi, Pakistan
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Katherine Wilkens ​ (m. 1987)​
Children	3
Parent	Christopher Van Hollen (father)
Education	Swarthmore College (BA) Harvard University (MPP) Georgetown University (JD)
Signature
Website	Senate website
Chris Van Hollen's voice Chris Van Hollen questions witnesses on housing supply shortages Recorded August 2, 2022

Christopher Van Hollen Jr. (/væn ˈhɒlən/ van HOL-ən; born January 10, 1959) is an American attorney and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Maryland since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Van Hollen served as the U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th congressional district from 2003 to 2017.^[1][2]

In 2007, Van Hollen became the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). In this post, he was responsible for leading efforts to defend vulnerable Democrats and get more Democrats elected to Congress in 2008, which he did. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi created a new leadership post, Assistant to the Speaker, in 2006 so that Van Hollen could be present at all leadership meetings. He was elected ranking member on the Budget Committee on November 17, 2010. Pelosi appointed Van Hollen to the 12-member bipartisan Committee on Deficit Reduction with a mandate for finding major budget reductions by late 2011. On October 17, 2013, Pelosi appointed Van Hollen to serve on the bicameral conference committee.^[3]

Van Hollen ran for the United States Senate in 2016 to replace retiring Senator Barbara Mikulski. He defeated U.S. Representative Donna Edwards in the Democratic primary and won the general election with 61% of the vote to Republican nominee Kathy Szeliga's 36%. He was reelected in 2022 with nearly 66% of the vote to Republican nominee Chris Chaffee's 34%. Van Hollen chaired the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) from 2017 to 2019.^[4] Van Hollen will become Maryland's senior senator when Ben Cardin retires from the Senate in 2025.^[5]