2017 Democratic National Committee chairmanship election

Following the 2016 DNC email leak, which suggested that the DNC leadership showed favor to Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential primary, Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned as DNC Chairwoman, and was succeeded on an interim basis by Donna Brazile. Brazile announced that she would not run for a full term. With no president to select a chair, this became the first contested DNC chair election since 1985. A DNC executive committee meeting took place in December to provide further procedural clarity into the race, though the election itself was to be held at the DNC's Winter Meeting in late February 2017. ==Timeline==

• July 28, 2016 – Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigns as chairman of the Democratic National Committee; Donna Brazile appointed as interim chairman. • Mid–December – Meeting of the executive board of the Democratic National Committee. • February 23–26, 2017 – Election to be held by party voting members at the DNC's Winter Meeting • 3:20 p.m. ET, February 25, 2017 – Tom Perez is elected the chair of the DNC after the second round of voting. Perez motioned for Keith Ellison to be elected as Deputy Chairman of the DNC, which was approved by unanimous voice vote. ==Candidates==

Calling for a return to the fifty-state strategy, Howard Dean, a former Governor of Vermont who served as chairman of the DNC from 2005 to 2009, announced his candidacy on November 10. Citing the potential for a divisive race, Dean withdrew himself from consideration on December 2. Keith Ellison, U.S. Representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district, announced his candidacy on November 14. That day, South Carolina Democratic Party chairman Jaime Harrison also declared himself a candidate. New Hampshire Democratic Party chairman Raymond Buckley declared his candidacy on November 29. After meeting with DNC members, Ellison announced on December 7 that he would resign his seat in the House of Representatives if elected DNC chair, so that he could focus his full attention on the job. One week later, Labor Secretary Tom Perez announced his candidacy. South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg announced his candidacy on January 5, 2017. Another possible candidate was Representative Ruben Gallego of Arizona. Former California Assembly Speaker John Pérez contemplated a run, but first decided instead to run for Congress, then withdrew from that for health reasons. Former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, once considered a potential candidate, took herself out of consideration. but decided not to run. Ilyse Hogue, the President of NARAL Pro-Choice America, and Representative Steve Israel of New York announced that they would not run. DNC Vice-chair R. T. Rybak considered a run, then chose to endorse Ellison when the latter announced his candidacy. Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Representative John Lewis, former Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer publicly supported Representative Keith Ellison of Minnesota, the co-chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. MoveOn.org, led by Ilya Sheyman, has also expressed support for Ellison, • Tom Perez of Maryland, United States Secretary of Labor from 2013 to 2017 • Samuel Ronan of Ohio, activist and Air Force veteran – withdrew February 25, 2017, and endorsed Ellison. • Raymond Buckley of New Hampshire, chairman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party since 2007, Buckley withdrew on February 18, 2017, and endorsed Ellison • Pete Buttigieg of Indiana, Mayor of South Bend, Indiana (2012–2020). Buttigieg dropped out on the day of the election, February 25, 2017, and did not endorse another candidate. • Howard Dean, Governor of Vermont (1991–2003); chairman of the DNC (2005–2009). Dean withdrew on December 2, 2016, and endorsed Buttigieg on February 22, 2017. After Buttigieg withdrew, Dean endorsed Ellison on February 25, 2017. • Jaime Harrison of South Carolina, chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party since 2013. Harrison withdrew on February 23, 2017, and endorsed Perez. Declined • Xavier Becerra, Attorney General of California (2017–2021); U.S. Representative from California (1993–2017) • Ruben Gallego, U.S. Representative from Arizona since 2015 • Martin O'Malley, Governor of Maryland (2007–2015); candidate for President in 2016 ==Forums and debates==

The candidates participated in regional forums in Phoenix, Arizona, on January 13 and 14, in Houston, Texas, on January 27 and 28, in Detroit, Michigan, on February 3 and 4, and in Baltimore, Maryland, on February 10 and 11. They participated in two debates: the first at George Washington University, hosted by The Huffington Post, on January 18 and the second in Atlanta, sponsored and aired nationally by CNN, on February 22. == Endorsements ==

With 447 voting members of the DNC, 224 votes were expected to be needed to win the chairmanship. However, only 427 members voted in the first round (Chairperson Donna Brazile and two other members present did not vote, and one abstained), so only 214.5 votes were required to reach the threshold for victory. In the first round, Perez received 213.5 votes, while Ellison received 200, Boynton Brown received 12, Buttigieg received one, and Greene received 0.5. After the first round, Greene dropped out and endorsed Perez, while Peckarsky and Ronan dropped out and endorsed Ellison. Boynton Brown withdrew without endorsing a candidate. In the second round, 435 votes were cast: 235 for Tom Perez and 200 for Keith Ellison. After Perez won, he selected Ellison as deputy chair. The vote tally was obtained through an email from the DNC. : Candidate secured enough votes to win election : Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round : Candidate withdrew ==See also==