Dem House leader Hakeem Jeffries still withholds endorsement after meeting with Zohran Mamdani

After meeting with leading New York City mayoral contender Zohran Mamdani, Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., issued a lukewarm statement through a spokesperson about the meeting and did not endorse his party's nominee.

Mamdani, a New York state assemblyman and self-proclaimed socialist who has promised to overhaul New York City and launch massive new government programs, has been endorsed by progressive politicians like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. 

Despite winning the Democratic Party’s nomination over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo by a wide margin, Mamdani has yet to be endorsed by the party’s top leaders, Jeffries and Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

Jeffries and Mamdani met in New York City for about an hour Friday.

After the meeting, Politico reporter Nicholas Wu posted a statement from Jeffries spokesperson Justin Chermol that called it "constructive" but did not include any mention of an endorsement.

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Chermol said "the meeting between Leader Jeffries and Assemblyman Mamdani was constructive, candid and community-centered, with particular focus on affordability.

"Leader Jeffries and Assemblyman Mamdani discussed a variety of other important issues, including public safety, rising antisemitism, gentrification and the importance of taking back the House in 2026."

According to Chermol’s statement, the two "agreed to reconvene shortly, alongside other members of the New York City congressional delegation and a few high-level community leaders."

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Mamdani is seen by many as a controversial candidate, partially due to his socialist policy proposals and heavy criticism of the state of Israel. Mamdani, who is Muslim, has declined to say whether Israel has the right to exist as a Jewish state and his initial refusal to condemn the phrase "globalize the intifada." However, he recently began distancing himself from the phrase. 

On Thursday, Jeffries told reporters "as has been the case with every single high-profile endorsement decision that I've made in the past, I have a sit-down conversation, and then I take it from there."

The meeting with Jeffries comes after Mamdani’s recent visit to Washington, D.C., where he attended a breakfast hosted by Ocasio-Cortez and mingled with some of the party’s most powerful players. Since then, he secured the endorsement of Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., who serves as the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee.

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Mamdani is running to unseat the current mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, who is running for re-election as an independent. He is also facing off against Cuomo, who is running as an independent, and activist Curtis Sliwa, who is the Republican Party nominee.