NY-09: Private poll shows Hakeem Jeffries with 50-point lead over Chi Oss in hypothetical congressional primary [View all]

[RandySF]

New York City Council Member Chi Ossé, who has reportedly been in talks about launching a primary challenge against Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, took the stage at a Zohran Mamdani rally Monday night, saying “after we win in November, the work does not end. If anything, that's when it begins.” If he was talking about unseating the House minority leader in 2026, it seems there would indeed be a lot of work to do.

Internal polling shows that Jeffries is well-liked in his congressional district, and that Ossé is still pretty unknown – despite his social media virality. According to the poll, 74% of voters polled approve of the job Jeffries is doing, 69% view him favorably and 69% said they would “probably” or “definitely” vote to reelect him. In a head-to-head matchup, the poll found that 72% would vote for Jeffries, while 21% would vote for Ossé. But Ossé has room to grow. Half of voters polled said they had never heard of him.

The poll was shared with City & State on the condition that we not name the entity that commissioned it. It was conducted by public opinion researcher Nancy Zdunkewicz’s firm Z to A Research, which specializes in text and online polling. It included 371 registered Democrats who are likely to vote in the 2026 midterms and was taken between Sept. 15 and 20. It has a margin of error of 5 points. It was not intended to be public.

The results were broken down into two scenarios: a “typical turnout scenario,” in which 65% of voters surveyed were over 50, and a “surge turnout scenario” with more younger and “progressive” voters. Ossé, who recently joined the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, fared slightly better in the surge scenario, narrowing Jeffries’ lead to 41 points.




https://www.cityandstateny.com/politics/2025/10/private-poll-shows-hakeem-jeffries-50-point-lead-over-chi-osse-hypothetical-congressional-primary/408870/?oref=csny-homepage-top-story