Jeffries signals he will weigh in on NYC mayoral race before early voting begins

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is expected to imminently intervene in New York City’s mayoral race after dodging the question for weeks.

The top House Democrat, who represents part of Brooklyn, has faced press scrutiny for repeatedly skirting reporters when asked whether he would support fellow Democrat Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, for mayor.

When asked during his Monday press conference if he would make his thoughts on the race clear before early voting begins in New York on Saturday, October 25, Jeffries replied: “Yes, that is my intention.”

That could mean Jeffries supports Mamdani before Election Day — or he could avoid supporting anyone in the race.

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Hakeem Jeffries said he will enter this week’s race for New York City mayor, in which Zohran Mamdani is the favorite. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

The remark was similar to comments he made to Fox News Digital on Friday, the day after the town hall debate. Jeffries, however, said then that he had not yet watched the debate at this point.

“I expect to speak to the Democratic candidate, Zohran, at some point before early voting,” he added when asked how long he was waiting to endorse.

He also sidestepped a question about why he hasn’t yet endorsed Mamdani during an appearance Sunday on ABC News’ “This Week.”

“As I indicated, I expect to have a conversation with him at some point this week before early voting, which begins next weekend in New York. And we will certainly have more to say about the mayoral race and our Democratic nominee before early voting begins,” Jeffries said.

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Mamdani is currently the presumptive front-runner in the race against Republican Curtis Sliwa and independent candidate Andrew Cuomo, the former governor of New York.

Jeffries’ counterpart in the House, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has repeatedly denounced Mamdani as a “Marxist.”

And Mamdani’s candidacy has caused some division among Democrats in Washington.

Independent candidate former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, speaks during a town hall debate with Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, center, and Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis, swimming pool)

He was supported by progressive Democratic Party stars like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., but Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., remained silent.

Reps. Laura Gillen, D-N.Y., and Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., moderates representing suburbs outside New York City, denounced Mamdani’s candidacy.

Jeffries appears to have been deliberately vague about his decisions, but Republicans have accused him and Schumer of prolonging the current government shutdown out of fear of a progressive revolt led by New York Democrats like Mamdani.

Jeffries made his brief remarks Monday during a news conference on the 20th day of the shutdown, with Republicans and Democrats appearing no closer to agreement on a path forward.

At another point in the news conference, Jeffries demanded that President Donald Trump take a more active role in negotiations to end the shutdown.

“Donald Trump definitely needs to step up. He needs to stand aside, get off the golf course and actually decide to end the lockdown that he created and allowed to happen,” Jeffries said.

“We know that Republicans in the House and Senate don’t do anything without getting permission from their boss, Donald J. Trump, and that’s why there have been no negotiations, no negotiations, since the Republicans shut down the government.”

President Donald Trump speaks during a Religious Liberty Commission hearing at the Museum of the Bible, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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But Republican congressional leaders repeatedly insisted they had nothing to negotiate after proposing a simple seven-week extension of federal funding levels for fiscal 2025.

The measure, called a continuing resolution (CR), aims to give congressional holdouts more time to reach a longer-term deal on fiscal 2026 funding.

The House passed the bill on September 19. But in the Senate, where at least eight Democrats are needed to break a filibuster if all Republican lawmakers support it, the bill has failed to advance twelve times.

Democratic leaders are demanding that any funding bill be accompanied by an extension of COVID-19 pandemic-era Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year.