2021 City Council campaign

On Juneteenth 2020, Ossé announced his 2021 campaign to succeed term-limited Councilman Robert Cornegy in the 36th district of the New York City Council.^[9] Ossé, who acknowledged that he knew little about city government before the protests of spring 2020, cited police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement as the impetus for his campaign, and charged that the City Council and Mayor Bill de Blasio had not done enough to reshape policing in the city.^[10][11]

With endorsements from the Working Families Party and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Courage to Change PAC, Ossé was seen as the furthest-left candidate in a field that also included district leader Henry Butler, local political operative Tahirah Moore, and pastor Robert Waterman.^[12][13] His campaign also found an unusual niche due to Ossé's youth and personal style, with many non-political publications interviewing Ossé and running profiles of his campaign.^[14][15][16]

On election night on June 22, Ossé led the field with 37 percent of the vote; when absentee ballots and ranked-choice votes were counted, he defeated Butler 57-43%.^[17][18] His victory, and the size of his margin, was seen as a considerable upset, given his opponents' more traditional political backgrounds and endorsements.^[19] Ossé faced minimal opposition in the November general election, and won easily, becoming the council's youngest ever member.^[20]