Gen Z firebrand challenges establishment giant: NYC’s Chi Ossé tees up primary bid against Hakeem Jeffries

By Fox News · Fox News

New York City council member Chi Ossé filed paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission on Monday for a congressional campaign , positioning him to launch a primary challenge against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., for New York's 8th Congressional District . Ossé is a far-left Gen Z activist and political ally of socialist Zohran Mamdani. The New York Post reported last week that Mamdani had urged Ossé against challenging the Democratic House leader. His campaign marks a direct challenge to the old guard of the Democratic Party establishment from the party's young, progressive wing, and it comes as Democrats are riding high following Mamdani's success in New York City and their gubernatorial wins in New Jersey and Virginia. Jeffries was reluctant to endorse Mamdani's mayoral campaign after the socialist shocked the political establishment when he secured the Democratic nomination in June. After four months, Jeffries finally offered Mamdani an 11th-hour endorsement ahead of early voting. 'STAY TUNED': JEFFRIES REPEATEDLY DODGES MAMDANI ENDORSEMENT AS SELF-IMPOSED DEADLINE LOOMS The party leader's reluctance to endorse Mamdani exposed a Democratic Party rift that has been brewing since Republicans won major gains in 2024, leaving Democrats without clear party leadership to respond to President Donald Trump 's sweeping second-term agenda. FIRST ON FOX: NEW SITE EXPOSES NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE ZOHRAN MAMDANI’S 'RADICAL' RECORD — IN HIS OWN WORDS New York's 8th Congressional District covers part of Brooklyn. Ossé currently represents Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant and North Crown Heights neighborhoods. He began his career in politics as an organizer during the Black Lives Matter movement of 2020 and was elected to City Council in 2021 at 23 years old, becoming the youngest member of the Council and its first Gen Z member. Ossé filed a statement of organization for "Chi Osse for Congress," through Katz Compliance, a political campaign finance provider. He…