Mamdani finally meets Jeffries — and comes up short

NEW YORK — Zohran Mamdani and Hakeem Jeffries huddled together in private conversation Friday in Brooklyn, their first face-to-face meeting since the young socialist remade the Democratic landscape with his decisive win in the primary for New York City mayor.

The high-stakes confab capped a whirlwind week for Mamdani. He was toasted by influential labor leaders, grilled by big business execs and Jewish elected officials, and embraced by House progressives who see him as the future of the Democratic Party. Before he met Jeffries on Friday, Mamdani had secured the endorsement of the city’s largest private-sector union. But the sitdown between the ascendent Democratic nominee and the top House Democrat in their hometown was the most anticipated moment of all.

It did not go as Mamdani hoped it would.

In an office space in East New York — a predominantly Black and working-class corner of Jeffries’ district — Mamdani and Jeffries began getting to know each other. Mamdani had arrived seeking an endorsement and left about an hour later with only the promise of another meeting.

It was a sign of how cautiously Jeffries is approaching Mamdani’s new and evolving role in the Democratic Party. The House minority leader has stressed that he does not know the 33-year-old democratic socialist who rocketed to national fame after defeating former Gov. Andrew Cuomo last month. Jeffries has also underscored the daylight between him and Mamdani, including on the candidate’s defense of the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which Mamdani has ever so slowly begun to walk back.

“The meeting between Leader Jeffries and Assemblyman Mamdani was constructive, candid and community-centered, with a particular focus on affordability,” Jeffries spokesperson Justin Chermol said in a statement, adding that their conversation touched on public safety, antisemitism, gentrification and Democrats’ fight to control the House in 2026.

That midterm fight in congressional battlegrounds across the country is a chief reason Jeffries must tread carefully. Beginning on primary night, Mamdani has been vilified by Republicans as the far-left menace representative of the Democratic Party’s near-future direction. The National Republican Congressional Committee has issued a barbed statement making Mamdani the face of the Democrats each time he meets with high-profile House members. Swing-district Democrats — including Reps. Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen of Long Island, which borders New York City — have already put some distance between themselves and Mamdani’s policies.

But Mamdani is the heavy favorite to become the next mayor of New York City. And even the candidate’s fiercest critics from within the party have acknowledged that his platform to create a more affordable New York City is a winning message for them all. Democrats lost their chance at the House majority in 2024 when Republicans were able to better convince voters that they’re the party focused on cost of living and quality of life.

The East New York section of Brooklyn where the Mamdani-Jeffries summit took place was a stronghold for Cuomo in the primary. It’s a pocket of the borough that has gentrified more slowly with some promised development there stalled.

Gentrification — a topic of discussion in the two Democrats’ sitdown — has been a flashpoint in the broader analysis of how Mamdani won. He turned out new voters in a multiracial coalition, but the core of his base in the primary was white, affluent and highly educated residents of Queens and Brooklyn. Jeffries’ political operation has nicknamed emboldened democratic socialists threatening to primary House incumbents “Team Gentification,” according to CNN.

The statement issued by Mamdani’s spokesperson after the Friday meeting echoed the one from Jeffries’ team.

“As a next step, both agreed to reconvene soon with additional members of the New York City delegation, along with key community leaders,” Mamdani spokesperson Jeffrey Lerner said.

Mamdani also has the endorsements of four New York City House Democrats: Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Nydia Velázquez, Jerry Nadler and Adriano Espaillat. Several of the others — including Reps. Greg Meeks, Ritchie Torres and Yvette Clarke — have voiced varying degrees of concern about Mamdani and reserved their endorsements.

Mamdani met Wednesday in Washington with House progressives convened by Ocasio-Cortez, his fellow Queens legislator and democratic socialist, to share his campaign organizing and communication tips.

Nadler has been arranging meetings between Mamdani and Jewish elected and community leaders in New York City. The Democratic nominee for mayor has also been in closed-door talks with business and tech leaders skeptical of his rise and his platform.

Earlier Friday, Mamdani was endorsed by the 1199SEIU health care workers union, showing that he is undoubtedly the labor candidate even if he’s not yet the choice of mainstream Democrats.

Mamdani will face Cuomo, incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, Republican Curtis Sliwa and independent Jim Walden in the November general election. Cuomo and Adams are running as independents.