NEW YORK — A young lefty upstart is running against an experienced leader of the Democratic Party — but this time, Zohran Mamdani is stuck in the middle.
City Council Member Chi Ossé, a democratic socialist, created a campaign committee Monday for a primary challenge against moderate House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries next year — a high-stakes test of the political forces Mamdani now has to balance.
“It’s a real pain in the ass for them,” Democratic consultant Chris Coffey said, referring to Mamdani and his team. “They really don’t want to be talking about Hakeem at a time when they need to reassure people — and get money from D.C. and Albany.”…