NASHVILLE - Former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez is the unanimous choice of all five Tennessee members of the Democratic National Committee for the party's new chairman, said state party chairwoman Mary Mancini.
In a news release, Mancini also rejected characterizations that the showdown this weekend in Atlanta between Perez and U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., represents a split in the party, saying both men are staunch progressives.
"I want to make this clear: This decision should not be viewed as a 'wing-vs.-wing' fight, and anyone who characterizes it as such is playing into the hands of those who benefit from perpetuating the idea that the Democratic Party is divided," Mancini said.