Perez
supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership and believes the 2016
Democratic Primary was not rigged against Sen. Bernie Sanders
Former Labor
Secretary Tom Perez was elected as the chair of the Democratic
National Committee, DNC, on Saturday, defeating Rep. Keith Ellison.
Perez, who
began working for former U.S. President Barack Obama's administration
in 2013, defeated Ellison 235 to 200 votes on a second ballot.
“With
hard work and a hell of a lot of organizing, we will turn this party
around,” Perez said on Saturday, the Washington Post reports.
Immediately
after Perez won, nine Ellison supporters chanted “power of the
people, not big money,” marching out of the room, the
Washington Post also reports.
The son
of Dominican immigrants is seen by many as an establishment pick.
Receiving support from former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, Perez
supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership, TPP, and believes the 2016
Democratic Primary was not rigged against Sen. Bernie Sanders.
DNC members
voted in Atlanta, Georgia Saturday for the new chair, who will be
responsible for rebuilding the party amid ongoing divisions after its
shock presidential election defeat last year.
Voting began
on Saturday morning for 447 members of the DNC. There were a total of
seven candidates. Some of the tightest competition in years, the
voting was almost certain to be pushed to later rounds, where a
candidate is required to receive a majority of votes to win.
Perez, who
was born and raised in Buffalo, New York, was seen as the preferred
choice for Obama and former Democratic Party presidential candidate
Hillary Clinton.
Ellison, the
first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress, was backed by progressives
within the party, including Sanders and Massachusetts Senator
Elizabeth Warren.
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