Hakeem Jeffries thought he had the Democrat Party locked down.
He's been riding high as the guy who could become the first black Speaker of the House.
But Hakeem Jeffries just got blindsided by one nasty surprise from his own party.
Socialist councilman files to take down House Democrat leader
Chi Ossé filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Monday to run for New York's 8th Congressional District.
That's the seat Hakeem Jeffries has held since 2013.
The 27-year-old Brooklyn city councilman became the youngest member of the New York City Council when voters elected him in 2021.
Ossé recently rejoined the Democratic Socialists of America after helping socialist Zohran Mamdani win the New York City mayor's race.
"I've been hearing a lot of concern about Democratic Party leadership," Ossé told the New York Times. "It's a big part of why I worked so hard to get Zohran elected and defeat the establishment's champion, Andrew Cuomo."
https://twitter.com/Gothamist/status/1990570745630704072?s=20
Mamdani tried to talk Ossé out of running.
The incoming mayor reportedly excluded Ossé from his election night celebration after the councilman refused to back down.
Mamdani spent months begging Jeffries for an endorsement during the mayoral race.
He finally got it 11 days before the election.
Now Mamdani worries Ossé's primary challenge could blow up the fragile truce between progressives and the establishment as he tries to push his socialist agenda through City Hall.
Progressive rage at Jeffries boils over
Jeffries hasn't faced a competitive primary since 2012 when he crushed a socialist challenger with 71% of the vote.
He's run unopposed in five of his last seven primaries.
But things have changed.
An Axios survey found fewer than one-quarter of Democrat House candidates committed to backing Jeffries as leader.¹
They're furious about his delayed endorsement of Mamdani, weak messaging against Trump, and failure to fight for healthcare reform.
"The anger of the base right now is not being matched by Democratic leadership," Maryland firefighter Harry Jarin told Axios.²
New Hampshire candidate Heath Howard called for "a new type of leadership."³
Illinois candidate Kat Abughazaleh demanded action "against this administration."⁴
Progressive House Democrats told Axios there's "massive discontent" with Jeffries among grassroots activists.⁵
One lawmaker said primary insurgents "absolutely" could be a problem for Jeffries.⁶
"People are going to think twice before making commitments to leadership because it's grassroots frustration with leadership that motivated them to run," the lawmaker explained.⁷
Progressive groups have been hammering Jeffries for months.
Protesters disrupted his book tour appearance in Chicago earlier this year.
House Democrats privately grumbled he needed to be more aggressive fighting Trump.
Ossé's background raises eyebrows
Ossé joined Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 and launched his City Council campaign on Juneteenth that year.
He admitted he "knew little about city government" before the riots.⁸
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's PAC endorsed him.
He beat establishment candidates by 14 points using ranked-choice voting in an upset victory that shocked New York political insiders.⁹
Ossé told Brooklyn Paper in February that he was raised practicing Nichiren Buddhism and has been "reconnecting with the tradition this year."¹⁰
"A lot of people assume Buddhists are really nice or really calm, not aggressive," Ossé said. "Those aren't traits I'd use to describe myself."¹¹
The councilman identifies as "openly queer" and built a massive social media following by posting inflammatory content attacking establishment Democrats.
He briefly joined the Democratic Socialists of America in 2020 but quit because his views "did not align" with the organization.¹²
Ossé rejoined DSA this summer after Mamdani's primary victory.
But DSA leadership is skeptical about endorsing him because of his "brief tenure and inconsistent participation" in the organization.¹³
https://twitter.com/TonySeruga/status/1988391226731835450?s=20
The stakes couldn't be higher
Democrats are three seats away from winning back the House majority in 2026.
That would make Jeffries Speaker of the House.
He'd be the first black Speaker in American history.
Instead, Jeffries has to defend his home seat while trying to lead national efforts to flip Republican districts.
"Leader Jeffries is fighting hard to lower the high cost of living, address the Republican healthcare crisis, combat corruption and win back control of the House," spokesman Justin Chermol said.¹⁴
"We welcome this primary challenge and look forward to a rigorous debate about the type of serious leadership required to deliver for the people of Brooklyn and the nation."¹⁵
Jeffries brushed off early reports of a potential challenge in October.
"You know that's not a serious question based on everything coming out of Brooklyn," he told reporters.¹⁶
Looks like Jeffries underestimated how much rage he built up on the Left.
Progressive Democrats watched him sit on the sidelines during Mamdani's bruising mayoral fight against Andrew Cuomo.
They saw him hesitate to confront Trump's second-term agenda.
And they decided if the establishment won't lead, they'll find someone who will.
https://twitter.com/JCColtin/status/1988726191222845874?s=20
Ossé just became the face of that rebellion.
Democrats crushed Republicans in the 2025 elections.
But their victories won't mean much if they spend 2026 tearing each other apart in brutal primary fights.
Jeffries built his career on being the unity candidate who could hold Democrats together.
Now he's fighting for survival against a 27-year-old socialist who thinks the party's future belongs to people like him, not career politicians like Jeffries.
This primary will determine whether establishment Democrats can hold off the socialist wave sweeping through their party or if the takeover Mamdani started will continue right through Congress.
¹ Axios, "Scoop: Dozens of Democratic House candidates won't commit to backing Hakeem Jeffries," October 16, 2025.
² – ⁷ Ibid.
⁸ Wikipedia, "Chi Ossé," accessed November 18, 2025.
⁹ Ibid.
¹⁰ Brooklyn Paper, interview with Chi Ossé, February 2025.
¹¹ Ibid.
¹² Wikipedia, "Chi Ossé," accessed November 18, 2025.
¹³ The New York Times, report on Chi Ossé's DSA membership, November 2025.
¹⁴ NBC News, "NYC council member prepares Democratic primary challenge against Hakeem Jeffries," November 17, 2025.
¹⁵ Ibid.
¹⁶ Breitbart, "Hakeem Jeffries Faces Primary Challenge from Mamdani Ally Chi Ossé," November 17, 2025.
