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Democrats this week maintained the status quo with the election of former Labor Secretary Tom Perez over Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn) for the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairmanship. Following his elevation, Perez appointed Ellison as Deputy Chair with unanimous approval. 

Ellison was supported by Bernie Sanders and the increasingly restive progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Appointing Ellison as Deputy DNC Chair was an effort to appease Sanders supporters as well as to help unite a fractured and divided party. 

As Will Rogers once said, “I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.” 

Perez was U.S. Secretary Secretary of Labor from 2013 to 2017. He previously served as the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. 

Now is time for the Democratic Party to undergo a fundamental reassessment. The Party needs to be re-imagined as less of an insider’s club focused on raising corporate money and more of an advocate for the working-class. With a new, reinvigorated DNC and a new presidential nominee, Democrats can begin the task of taking back the White House in 2020 while making gains in the midterm elections. 

Is the Democratic Party ready to unite for the formidable tasks ahead? Is Perez the best person for the job? As a Democrat, I can only hope for the best.