Sen. Charles Schumer Chuck SchumerJacobin editor: Primarying Schumer would force him to fight Trump's SCOTUS nominee CNN's Toobin: Democrats are 'wimps' who won't 'have the guts' to add Supreme Court seats Republican senator says plans to confirm justice before election 'completely consistent with the precedent' MORE has become increasingly vocal at private party meetings and strategy sessions, urging his colleagues to do more to contribute and raise money for Democratic candidates.

Democrats say Schumer’s recent actions show that the leadership transition from retiring Sen. Harry Reid Harry Mason ReidOn The Trail: Battle over Ginsburg replacement threatens to break Senate Democrats fear Russia interference could spoil bid to retake Senate Graham signals support for confirming a Supreme Court nominee this year MORE (Nev.) to the 65-year-old New Yorker has begun.

“He’s taking over or at least becoming more vocal on a lot of the leadership stuff, and I think Harry’s starting to pull back,” said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) Chairman Jon Tester Jonathan (Jon) TesterPence seeks to boost Daines in critical Montana Senate race This World Suicide Prevention Day, let's recommit to protecting the lives of our veterans Filibuster fight looms if Democrats retake Senate MORE (Mont.).

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“Sen. Schumer is always respectful of the fact that Leader Reid is still the leader, but more and more often, they’ve been running things together,” said a senior Democratic aide.

Schumer, who is now the third-ranked Senate Democrat, has also been active in meeting with donors and constituencies to motivate them ahead of the Nov. 8 elections.

He has already begun to lay out to Democratic insiders how he would run the Senate as majority leader. If Democrats win control of the Senate this fall, Schumer would be the chamber’s first Jewish majority leader.

At a conference last week hosted by civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton, Schumer said that his No. 1 goal would be to confirm progressive nominees to tilt the ideological balance of the Supreme Court.

On the policy front, he has taken the lead in laying the groundwork for a deal that would marry international corporate tax reform with a major infrastructure investment package. Closing corporate tax loopholes and using the revenue to create jobs will be one of Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonJoe Biden looks to expand election battleground into Trump country Biden leads Trump by 12 points among Catholic voters: poll The Hill's Campaign Report: Biden goes on offense MORE’s top legislative priorities if the Democratic nominee is elected president.

Schumer has been at the forefront of the high-stakes battle with Republicans over funding to fight the Zika virus. He has called for the appointment of a “Zika czar” and organized numerous press conferences to bash Republicans for not fully granting President Obama’s request for $1.9 billion in new funding.

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“More and more he is helping to set strategy, and he’s very engaged in that role,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen Cynthia (Jeanne) Jeanne ShaheenSenate Democrats introduce bill to sanction Russians over Taliban bounties Trump-backed candidate wins NH GOP Senate primary to take on Shaheen Democratic senator urges Trump to respond to Russian aggression MORE (D-N.H.), who noted Schumer helped organize a press conference on the House steps last week urging Republicans to act on Zika funding and other issues.

“I think the shoe is going to fit him very, very well. He’s had a little time to kind of mold into it,” Tester said of Schumer’s all-but-certain ascension to majority leader if Democrats win back the Senate. “He’s had his eye on it probably since he was born.”

If Republicans retain control, Schumer will easily slide into the role of Senate minority leader, colleagues say.

Schumer locked up the job in March of last year during an intense round of phone calls to Democratic senators after Reid, 76, quietly tipped him off that he would soon announce his retirement.

Reid had insisted to colleagues at the beginning of the 114th Congress that he would keep his job and run for reelection this year. But after suffering a serious eye injury while exercising that partially blinded him, Reid changed his mind.

The Nevada Democrat formally endorsed Schumer as he was rounding up votes, cementing the transition more than a year before the Democratic caucus was to vote in a leadership election.

In the 17 months since those rapid-fire series of events, Schumer has been preparing to take over, like a quarterback drafted in the first round waiting for the veteran starter to step aside.

Schumer is already leading the caucus in many ways.

A few months ago, Democrats appeared buoyant about their chances of winning Senate control as they watched Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump Donald John TrumpBubba Wallace to be driver of Michael Jordan, Denny Hamlin NASCAR team Graham: GOP will confirm Trump's Supreme Court nominee before the election Southwest Airlines, unions call for six-month extension of government aid MORE’s poll numbers sink.

But their hopes suffered a blow in late June when Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellGraham: GOP will confirm Trump's Supreme Court nominee before the election Trump puts Supreme Court fight at center of Ohio rally The Memo: Dems face balancing act on SCOTUS fight MORE (R-Ky.) scored a coup by convincing Sen. Marco Rubio Marco Antonio RubioMurky TikTok deal raises questions about China's role Sunday shows preview: Justice Ginsburg dies, sparking partisan battle over vacancy before election Florida senators pushing to keep Daylight Savings Time during pandemic MORE to run for reelection, giving Republicans a better chance of keeping the Florida Senate seat.

The momentum was short-lived, however, as Schumer struck back by recruiting Evan Bayh, a popular former senator from Indiana, to run for his onetime seat. A race that handicappers thought was a slam-dunk for Republicans is now favored to go Democratic.

Since then, other threats have emerged to Democratic dreams of a new majority. Many major Republican donors are writing off Trump and are now pouring money into protecting Senate GOP incumbents, giving them a significant financial advantage in several states.

Clinton, meanwhile, has failed to pull ahead of Trump decisively in the polls, which means the anti-Trump wave that Democratic strategists were hoping to ride to the Senate majority may not swell high enough.

Schumer took the reins last week by sternly warning colleagues during a private lunch not to be complacent and to give generously from their campaign accounts to bolster the DSCC. Tester announced at the meeting that Schumer, a prolific fundraiser, would give the campaign arm $2 million.

Democratic senators say Schumer is in regular touch with Clinton campaign aides, relaying advice and keeping them in the loop on important developments, such as Clinton’s bout with pneumonia, which put her on the verge of fainting Sunday at a 9/11 memorial service.

Schumer gave her some political cover by announcing on Monday that he too had been hit by the same illness, seeking to dispel the notion that her episode was unusual or debilitating.