Mamdani discourages Hakeem Jeffries primary challenger, tells city council member to ‘focus’ on NYC

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani disagreed with a city council member’s recent decision to challenge House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., in a Democratic primary during a local interview Wednesday.

“Let me talk about Hakeem Jeffries for a moment, who now may face a challenge from Chi Ossé, who is a member of the DSA [Democratic Socialists of America],” PIX11’s Dan Mannarino asked Mamdani. “You said that there are local issues that Mr. Ossé should be focused on, maybe should remain a councilman. Are you saying he should not run against Hakeem Jeffries?”

“No,” Mamdani answered. “I’m saying that I think the focus should be right here on New York City. I respect the work that Council Member Ossé has done…”

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Chi Osse, a New York City Council member, filed for a congressional campaign on Monday that could potentially challenge Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. (Christian Monterrosa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“But what does that mean? Should he not run?” Mannarino pressed.

“I think that right now is not the time to be engaging in that kind of a primary. I think the focus should be on delivering on this affordability agenda,” Mamdani said.

Ossé filed paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission on Monday for a congressional campaign that would position him to challenge Jeffries, who is up for re-election in 2026. The New York Post previously reported Mamdani had urged Ossé against challenging Jeffries, despite Ossé being considered Mamdani’s political ally.

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New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani told PIX11 that he has not made any formal endorsements. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

The democratic socialist mayor-elect told Mannarino that he has not made any formal endorsements for candidates despite ongoing reports.

“There’s a lot of things that I’ll read in the newspaper, which will be news to me as well,” Mamdani said. “And I think what New Yorkers should know is that every day I wake up, and I think about the affordability agenda. I think there will always be an attempt to make it a story about something else, but the most important thing is, can New Yorkers afford this city?”

Fox News Digital reached out to Ossé and Mamdani’s offices for comment but did not immediately receive responses.

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Reports have suggested that Zohran Mamdani intends to back a Palestinian American activist for a state assembly seat. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)

Mamdani’s comments came after reports suggested that he was backing Aber Kawas, a longtime Palestinian American activist, as a candidate for a state assembly seat.

“[Mamdani] told me that while he has tremendous respect for everyone in this race, he has said that he will support Aber in whatever she pursues,” top political advisor to the Mamdani transition, Sam McCann, said according to a NY Daily News report.

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Mamdani himself has not publicly commented on the race.