Jeffries Questions Support for Mamdani in NYC Mayoral Race

On Thursday, House Democrat leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed his confusion over why he hasn’t endorsed socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani for New York City’s upcoming mayoral election, despite Mamdani running under the Democratic banner.

Jeffries, who represents the district where Mamdani is a candidate, mentioned that his constituents aren’t urging him to back democratic socialists. He avoided directly addressing inquiries about Brooklyn residents’ opinions on their mayoral choices. His attempts to distance himself from Mamdani seem to be occurring as some Democrats are growing impatient and are jumping on board with socialist campaigns.

“I don’t know,” Jeffries remarked when questioned about his lack of support for Mamdani. “I think people need to understand that if that’s the query you’re posing to me, my constituents aren’t.”

🚨 Leader Jeffries when asked how his members view Zoran Mamdani, “You have to ask them. I am not hiding from my members… I am going to the mosque.”

*No answering questions yet* pic.twitter.com/iqruzoxmdz

– Daily Caller (@dailycaller) September 4, 2025

Despite Mamdani’s surprising win over former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary, Jeffries has met with him only twice since Mamdani secured the nomination while refusing to back his campaign publicly.

Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized Jeffries for his reluctance to support Mamdani, pointing out the challenges of asking voters to back party candidates later if they don’t have support within the party currently. “It complicates the ability to ask voters to support candidates later on,” she stated.

Jeffries seemed to play down inquiries about his members’ views on Mamdani, directing reporters to go out and ask for themselves. “I think you have to ask them. I’m not hiding from my members.” He added, “I’m going to the mosque, I’m going to the synagogue, I’m going to the Black Baptist Church. I’m on the street. I’m in the park.”

The Democratic National Committee recently showed support for Mamdani’s campaign on social media, featuring a clip where he welcomed skeptics to join his movement. “We don’t ask where they went or why they haven’t been there yet. We welcome them,” Mamdani said.

Jeffries has not taken Mamdani up on this offer, and a Democrat from Reed House suggested waiting to see if they would back candidates with socialist leanings. “New Yorkers aren’t ashamed,” he said. “And it’s very easy to understand what people think about the situation. I’m happy to welcome that.”