Socialist Revolution? Zohran Mamdani’s Allies Seek To Primary House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Other Democrats, Report Says.

Allies of socialist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, who unexpectedly won the city’s Democratic primary, are plotting primary challenges against the city’s top Democratic incumbents—including House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries.

“Mamdani’s allies, notably key leaders of the Democratic Socialists of America, are talking about running primary challengers against Jeffries and several other incumbents, including Reps. Ritchie Torres, Jerry Nadler, Dan Goldman and Yvette Clarke,” CNN reported Wednesday.

The intraparty tensions come at a precarious time for Democrats, who are facing plummeting approval ratings and struggling to rally behind a national leader ahead of the 2026 midterms. Mamdani’s surprise primary win last month has energized far-left voters but unnerved the party establishment. Most top Democrats, including Jeffries and Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), have yet to officially endorse Mamdani.

Jeffries on Wednesday dismissed the primary threats, telling CNN that he has “no idea what these people are talking about.” But Jeffries senior adviser André Richardson issued a stern warning, saying that if Mamdani’s allies go forward with a primary fight, “our response will be forceful and unrelenting. We will teach them and all of their incumbents a painful lesson on June 23, 2026.”

Other Democrats, meanwhile, are reportedly in “absolute panic and fear” following Mamdani’s victory, torn between endorsing a candidate whom many privately call “toxic” and risking primary challenges if they stay silent, the New York Post reported.

Jeffries remains the number-one target for the primary challengers, CNN reported.

The House minority leader’s tenure “has left a vacuum that organizations like DSA are filling. I think that is more important right now,” Gustavo Gordillo, a co-chair of New York City’s chapter of Democratic Socialists of America, told CNN. “To me it often seems like he is the one picking the fight with the left, and I think he should focus on fighting the right.”

Another Democratic Socialist, New York state senator Jabari Brisport (D.), slammed Jeffries for “rapidly growing out of touch with an insurgent and growing progressive base within his own district that he should pay more attention to.”

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