by Natalia Mittelstadt
A democratic socialist New York City councilman has filed paperwork to run against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in the 2026 midterm election.
Chi Ossé, 27, represents the city’s 36th District, which includes North Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant, in the New York City Council, which is a position he has held since 2021, The Hill news outlet reported.
The New York Post reported last week that Ossé was preparing to challenge Jeffries against the wishes of New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, whom the councilman endorsed.
Jeffries “is focused on battling Donald Trump, ending the Republican shutdown of the federal government and addressing the crushing GOP healthcare crisis,” his spokesperson, Justin Chermol, told the Post.
Democrats have come out against the idea of doing a primary challenge against Jeffries. Mamdani discouraged Osséfrom running.
“I believe that there are many ways right here in New York City to both deliver on an affordability agenda and take on the authoritarian administration in the White House,” he said, according to Politico reporter Jeff Coltin.
Adam Green, the co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, also told Coltin that progressives in New York “should be doing everything they can to help” Mamdani. He added that right now is not the “right moment to launch a primary challenge” against Jeffries.
On top of this, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY-14) told Axios on Monday that a primary challenge to Jeffries was “not a good idea.”
Ossé’s bid comes as other younger Democratic candidates have launched campaigns for seats currently held by older Democrats, such as Reps. Nancy Pelosi of California, Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, Steve Cohen of Tennessee, and others.
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Natalia Mittelstadt is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
Photo “Chi Ossé” by Chi Ossé.
For the folks that think Ha Keem Jeffries (AKA Temu Obama) isn’t Marxist and racist enough.