If Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada loses his re-election bid next week, his two senior deputies, Richard Durbin of Chicago and Charles Schumer of New York, are widely expected to compete for the title. That is why, in the classic way of Washington, the two men are doing everything they can to act as if they don't want the job. 
 
 Associated Press Charles Schumer 
 
 Sen. CHARLES SCHUMER (D., N.Y.) Elected to Senate: 1998 
 
 Age: 59 
 
 Home: Brooklyn, NY 
 
 Former chairman, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee 
 
 Former New York Assembly member; former U.S. House member 
 
 For the race that dare not speak its name, Democratic lawmakers and Hill staffers say there is no explicit or even implicit campaigning. Both men say they expect Mr. Reid to win. Spokesmen for both declined to discuss the matter. 
 
 Mr. Schumer has even donated $500,000 to the Nevada Democratic Party, cash designed to bolster the chances of the man whose defeat could catapult the New Yorker into one of Washington's top jobs. Mr. Durbin, similarly, has given $50,000. 
 
 It is an awkward time for the Senate's top three Democrats. For all the normal stress an election brings to a politician, the results could spell major changes in the professional and personal relationships of three politicians at the very top of the Senate power structure. 
 
 Mr. Reid is currently straining to win re-election in what polls say is a toss-up race. Messrs. Durbin and Schumer share more than power. They are also roommates, known for spending what little private time they have in Washington bickering over who finished the cereal. 
 
 "I think Harry Reid's going to win the election, and I'm working hard for him," said Mr. Schumer, who is heavily favored in his own re-election campaign, during at a recent debate in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. 
 
 Looming over the non-contest contest is the memory of 2004, when Sen. Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) sank his chance to succeed Sen. Tom Daschle as Democratic leader by making calls seeking support the weekend before Mr. Daschle was defeated. 
 
 Some Democrats, and at least one Republican, think Mr. Schumer has an early edge. In a letter this week to the Elko Daily Free Press, Nevada GOP state Sen. Dean Rhoads endorsed Mr. Reid, saying that if he doesn't win, "the next Senate leader will be Chuck Schumer, a vicious liberal from New York City." 
 
 Bloomberg Richard Durbin 
 
 Sen. RICHARD DURBIN (D., Ill.) Elected to Senate: 1996 
 
 Age: 65 
 
 Home: Springfield, Ill. 
 
 Senate Assistant Majority Leader and Whip 
 
 Former U.S. House member 
 
 In public and in private, Messrs. Durbin and Schumer are engaged in wide-ranging campaign efforts to help their party, efforts that could help Democrats keep a slim Senate majority and could also prove valuable should the leadership position become available. If Reid wins his race it would be difficult for the GOP to gain enough seats to threaten that majority. 
 
 On the drive to the one and only debate of Mr. Schumer's re-election campaign, the senator spent much of the time on the phone discussing strategy for other Senate races, according to a person familiar with the matter. 
 
 With his own coffers overflowing, he has given $3 million to the Senate Democrats' campaign arm and distributed money to Senate candidates and state party organizations. 
 
 Mr Durbin has also given money to campaign organizations and individual candidates around country. 
 
 Mr. Durbin visited more than a half-dozen states in recent weeks as a surrogate or booster for Democratic candidates. 
 
 At a recent stop in Delaware to help Chris Coons's bid for the Senate, he attended a fund-raiser and a campaign stop. Mr. Schumer hosted two fund-raisers for the candidate. 
 
 In style, there are clear differences between the two men. Mr. Schumer is outspoken and hyperactive, whereas Mr. Durbin, though hardly shy, is seen as a more even-keeled lawmaker. On policy, they are similar, though Mr. Durbin has been more outspoken on civil-liberties issues, particularly the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. 
 
 Because Mr. Schumer steered Senate Democrats to big wins in 2006 and 2008, he can likely rely on the support of more than a dozen relatively new lawmakers. Those who won elections in 2006 are up for re-election in 2012, and that may also factor into any decision on future leaders. 
 
 Becoming majority leader would be more than just a promotion for Mr. Schumer. For years, according to past and present associates, he has had a fascination with Lyndon B. Johnson, arguably the most powerful majority leader in U.S. history. 
 
 Perhaps most telling: The man known for being a constant media presence has been uncharacteristically quiet of late. For decades, Mr. Schumer has held regular Sunday press conferences in New York City to generate attention on a dizzying array of topics. 
 
 It has been two months since he held one, which may be a career record. 
 
 Asked why, a Schumer spokesman declined to comment. 
 
 —Janet Hook contributed to this article. 
 
 Write to Devlin Barrett at devlin.barrett@wsj.com 

 WASHINGTON — Senator Charles E. Schumer shipped $500,000 to Nevada in recent weeks to help Harry Reid , the Senate majority leader and Mr. Schumer’s political patron and close friend, as he fights for his political life. 
 
 At the same time Mr. Schumer, a New York Democrat, made out a smaller check, for $20,000, to the Democratic Party in Vermont, where the gift earned him the good will of Senator Patrick J. Leahy, even though Mr. Leahy is not believed to be in any serious re-election jeopardy. 
 
 “Senator Leahy takes no election for granted and is grateful for Senator Schumer’s support,” said Carolyn Dwyer, campaign manager for Mr. Leahy. 
 
 The two donations underscore the excruciatingly delicate position Mr. Schumer finds himself in these days. He is doing everything he can to help his friend Mr. Reid fend off a challenge from the Tea Party candidate Sharron Angle and prevent the embarrassing ouster of the party leader. 
 
 Yet given his own deep political ambitions and drive, Mr. Schumer is also very carefully laying the groundwork to move on a moment’s notice to try to secure the top Democratic job if Mr. Reid is defeated on Tuesday. 
 
 The situation for Mr. Schumer is further complicated by the fact that his partner in the Senate leadership and Capitol Hill housemate, Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, is also positioning himself in the underground campaign to replace Mr. Reid, though both men have made it clear they would greatly prefer that Mr. Reid return. The senators and their aides declined to comment for this article. 
 
 Mr. Schumer, one of the party’s most prolific fund-raisers, has distributed $4 million from his own campaign coffers to the party and his colleagues this election cycle, including the $500,000 turned over to the Nevada Democratic Party to help Mr. Reid. Mr. Durbin has given nearly $500,000 to the campaign effort of Senate Democrats, and has appeared at fund-raisers and events and barnstormed with Mr. Reid. 
 
 Neither Mr. Schumer nor Mr. Durbin appears to be openly courting support for the job. And in the treacherous world of Senate leadership elections, even a hint of acting before Mr. Reid’s fate is known could be costly. 
 
 “With all of the problems our party is having this cycle, he has really put the kibosh on any conversations about Harry Reid other than we all have to support him,” Senator Claire McCaskill, Democrat of Missouri, said of Mr. Schumer. “I think everyone has respected Chuck’s leadership in that regard.” 
 
 But the political activities of Mr. Durbin and Mr. Schumer in recent weeks reflect a sophisticated and nuanced effort to build support for a race that would break out almost immediately if Mr. Reid lost. 
 
 Mr. Durbin has appeared or is scheduled to appear at events in California, Delaware, Kentucky, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin. He has traveled twice in recent weeks to Nevada on behalf of Mr. Reid. 
 
 “It is good to be here,” Mr. Durbin said as he gave a pep talk to labor activists in Henderson, Nev., last week. “Not only to be here with you but to be here with my best friend and the best majority leader in the United States Senate, Harry Reid of Nevada.” 
 
 Mr. Schumer has given $50,000 to the state party in Colorado, where Senator Michael Bennet is running; $50,000 to the state party in Washington, where Senator Patty Murray is running; and $50,000 to the state party in Wisconsin, where Senator Russ Feingold is running, according to finance disclosure statements. He even pumped $50,000 into Maryland at the request of Senator Barbara Mikulski, who is expected to cruise to re-election but who was eager to help other Democratic candidates in her state. 
 
 Dwight Pelz, chairman of the Washington State Democratic Party, said the party was happy to get $50,000 recently from both Mr. Schumer and Mr. Durbin. There was speculation around his office, Mr. Pelz said, that the checks may also be indicative of a race for the leadership should Mr. Reid fall. 
 
 Given his successful run as chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, adding 15 Democratic seats from 2006 to 2008, Mr. Schumer has generally been considered the favorite in any potential leadership fight because of his alliances and formidable skills. He is among the most media savvy, politically astute and aggressive members on Capitol Hill. 
 
 But several people close to him say he has spent considerable time in the Senate trying to dispel an image that hung over him in the House: that of the sharp-elbowed politician who puts his own interest ahead of his party’s, a reputation that has led him to move very cautiously at the moment. In addition, leadership elections can be unpredictable and Mr. Durbin has his own advantages, like his support among the more liberal Senate Democrats. 
 
 For Mr. Schumer, it would be bittersweet to seek Mr. Reid’s post. People close to both men say that Mr. Schumer considers Mr. Reid a close friend and attributes much of his success in the Senate to him. 
 
 It was Mr. Reid who created a special post in the party leadership structure, Democratic vice chairman, specifically for Mr. Schumer in November 2006 when the New Yorker was itching for a larger role in the national party. Mr. Reid also gave Mr. Schumer a seat on the powerful Finance Committee. 
 
 “Harry Reid has played a key role in helping Chuck Schumer become the senator he is today,” said Phil Singer, a close adviser to Mr. Schumer. “And Chuck knows that better than anyone else.” 
 
 The relationship between the two was on display at a recent fund-raiser that Mr. Schumer organized on Mr. Reid’s behalf in Brooklyn. Introducing Mr. Reid to a group of wealthy New York City donors, including the developer Bruce C. Ratner, Mr. Schumer said Mr. Reid “is like a brother to me,” according to a person in attendance. (Recently, Mr. Reid bought Mr. Schumer a Netflix subscription.) 
 
 A longtime admirer of Mr. Schumer’s political instincts, Mr. Reid persuaded Mr. Schumer to take charge of the Democratic campaign committee after the disastrous results of the 2004 elections for Senate Democrats. 
 
 Mr. Reid had just become Democratic leader then after the party’s previous leader, Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, was defeated in his re-election bid. Mr. Reid nailed down the support to replace Mr. Daschle, a man he often referred to as his brother, within hours of the results.
– Capitol Hill housemates Charles Schumer and Richard Durbin are likely to end up fighting over a lot more than the breakfast cereal if Harry Reid loses his re-election battle. The senators from New York and Illinois, Reid's top two deputies, are subtly building support for bids to become majority leader—while publicly throwing their full support behind Reid, the New York Times reports. Schumer has donated $500,000 to the Nevada Democratic Party and Durbin has kicked in $50,000. Both men, keenly aware of how risky it is to be seen angling prematurely for Reid's position, are doing everything they can to act like they don't want the job, the Wall Street Journal notes. Schumer—expected to cruise to victory in his own re-election fight—is seen as the front-runner to replace Reid if Sharron Angle wins in Nevada and the Democrats keep their majority, although associates say that victory will be bittersweet. "Harry Reid has played a key role in helping Chuck Schumer become the senator he is today,” one of Schumer's close advisers says. “And Chuck knows that better than anyone else.”