The divisions within the Democratic Party were in full view on Saturday, when former Labor Secretary Thomas Perez narrowly defeated Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota to become the new head of the Democratic National Committee . As soon as Perez won 235 votes on the second ballot and became the first Latino chair of the DNC, Ellison’s supporters began chanting: “Party for the people, not big money!” It was the party’s first contested election for the chairmanship in more than three decades, and the balloting in Atlanta on Saturday made it clear the “Democrats have yet to heal the wounds from last year’s presidential primary,” as the New York Times puts it . In a nod to these divisions, Perez quickly called on Ellison to serve as deputy chair. "We are all in this together," Perez said, as he called on Democrats to unite against “the worst president in the history of the United States.” Ellison accepted the position and said his supporters should unite behind the new leadership: “If you came here supporting me, wearing a Keith t-shirt, or any t-shirt, I’m asking you to give everything you’ve got to support Chairman Perez.” Although some in the party said they wanted to avoid a repeat of the primary fight between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders that seemed to be inevitable as the contest effectively became a two-man race. Perez was endorsed by several members of former president Barak Obama’s administration while Ellison was backe
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