He helped to craft the 1990s crime bill and once voted against gay marriage.

Sen. Charles Schumer has since shed such views, and is beating the progressive drum.

Just this term, the Senate Majority Leader has introduced a bill to end the federal prohibition on marijuana. He has touted the need to go “big” and “bold” on President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda. And, in tweet after tweet, he has urged Biden to cancel student debt.

“The American people are strongly behind us on this issue, overwhelmingly,” he said at a press event on student debt earlier this year.

His embrace of these progressive policies - which has received praise from some on the left - mirrors a trend within the wider Democratic party, but it also comes as he faces a potential primary challenger from the left.

Waleed Shahid, spokesman for Justice Democrats, a left-wing group that helped to launch the political careers of Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman, said he sees “self-interest” at play.

Schumer “knows that he might have a competitive primary election in 2022,” he said.

One name tossed around as a potential challenger is Ocasio-Cortez, though she has not announced anything.

Asked by Spectrum News about Schumer, the Bronx Democrat stressed the need for him to get results, arguing he has “unique" power as majority leader.

“It's a major step to have the senate majority leader in Sen. Schumer adopt these positions,” she said. “Now we have to translate them into actually getting them done.”

Some Democrats caution against making too much of Schumer’s progressive maneuvers. Democratic strategist Jon Reinish says Schumer has a track record of adopting and championing good policy.

“If he sees policy that's going to benefit as many New Yorkers as possible, doesn't matter where it comes from,” he said.

A person close to Schumer argues the senator has worked to advance issues like cannabis reform and student debt relief for years, but only recently have things fallen into place where they are within range to possibly act on. On college affordability, in particular, they pointed to past legislation the senator has championed.

That all said, would a progressive challenger even stand a chance against Schumer, a voracious glad-hander who famously visits all 62 New York counties each year?

Reinish argues it will not be easy.

“Schumer has really long roots and a really long record that goes so deep of delivering for New York and being elected by very wide margins,” he said.

Deliberate or not, Schumer’s embrace of progressive causes might dissuade a potential challenger like Ocasio-Cortez from even trying.

Shahid said so far Justice Democrats have not engaged with any candidate about running to primary Schumer. Their main focus at the congressional level in New York, he said, is primarying Rep. Carolyn Maloney.