New York City Council member Chi Ossé has dropped a bid to challenge House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) in a primary after New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani expressed his opposition.
“Exploring the possibility of this run was important,” Ossé said in a statement to Politico. “As committed, I will not be launching this campaign without the support of DSA, and so the exploration process is concluded.”
The Hill has reached out to a spokesperson of Ossé for comment.
Ossé filed to run for Congress in mid-November and sought the backing of the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), an organization that helped run Mamdani’s widely praised on-the-ground campaign for mayor.
Mamdani opposed Ossé’s long-shot run and spoke at a DSA forum discouraging the organization from endorsing him, saying it would make it more difficult to enact his administration’s policy priorities.
“Right now is not the time to be engaging in that type of primary,” he said in an interview on local outlet PIX11 News, a Nexstar affiliate, shortly after Ossé filed paperwork to run.
“I think the focus should be delivering on this affordability agenda,” he later added. Mamdani’s mayoral campaign heavily centered on affordability, and his key campaign promises included providing free buses and universal child care for city residents.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) also indicated that she would not support Ossé’s run, echoing Mamdani’s comments that a primary challenge to the House’s Democratic leader was not a “good thing” right now.
The city’s DSA chapter ultimately voted against endorsing Ossé the week after he filed to run. Though Ossé ended his campaign against Jeffries, Mamdani’s mayoral victory — once also considered a long-shot by election analysts — has inspired other socialist and left-leaning candidates to launch bids for congressional seats.
https://thehill.com/homenews/5636468-osse-drops-bid-against-jeffries/
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.