The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) sent a bouquet of condolence flowers to Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries' Capitol Hill office Wednesday, mocking his party's primary election results in New York. The gesture was in response to the defeat of two incumbents endorsed by Jeffries to candidates backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The flowers were accompanied by a card reading, "With heartfelt sympathy," intended to "commemorate" the losses. NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella stated, "Three losses in one night is tough. We wanted so-called ‘Leader’ Jeffries to know our thoughts are with him, his candidates, and whatever remains of his influence in the Democrat Party."
However, Jeffries dismissed the NRCC's stunt, accusing Republicans of interfering in New York's District 17 Democratic primary. "The interesting thing is the NRCC and Republicans spent millions of dollars trying to pick Mike Lawler’s opponent and they failed miserably," Jeffries said, referring to the primary race where Cait Conley won as the Democratic candidate to face Lawler (R-NY) in November. Jeffries expressed confidence that Conley "is going to take Mike Lawler out in November, and we’re going to take back the House of Representatives."
The primary results saw Darializa Avila Chevalier defeat Rep. Adriano Espaillat in the 13th District, and Brad Lander unseat Rep. Dan Goldman in the 10th District. Claire Valdez also defeated several Democrats, including Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, in the 7th District. These outcomes have led to questions about Jeffries' influence within the Democratic Party.
An insider close to Jeffries downplayed the significance of the defeats, telling The Post, "This isn’t a case of Jeffries-backed candidates losing. Jeffries is loyal to his members. [Rep. Grace] Meng won, [Rep. Ritchie] Torres won, Goldman lost. Espaillat lost. Not great but not dramatic and will not change the outcome in November when Democrats take the House."