DNC chairman says he’s ‘absolutely not’ considering resigning

Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tom Perez said Sunday he is “absolutely not” considering resigning in the wake of last week’s chaotic Iowa caucuses. 

Perez’s response on CNN’s “State of the Union” followed a call for him to step down from Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), the chairwoman of the House Administration Committee’s subpanel on elections. 

After dismissing the call for him to resign, Perez lauded the work the DNC has done in the last three election cycles since President Trump’s 2016 win. 

“We have been winning, this is what it’s about. I think it’s important for people to take a broader step back,” he said, adding that Democrats made gains in 2017, 2018 and 2019. 

“We are better prepared to hand our nominee an infrastructure of success than ever before,” Perez said. 

Asked if the DNC takes responsibility over the chaotic caucus, Perez said the national party and state party are “in this together.” 

“The Iowa Democratic Party runs the actual election, but… any time something goes wrong, whether run by the state party or not, we’re in this together,” Perez said. 

He said that the DNC will “absolutely have” a “conversation” over caucus systems and whether Iowa should maintain its first-in-the-nation voting status. 

Perez also said that he and Fudge “categorically disagree” over reforming super delegates, which Fudge did not mention in her call for Perez to resign. 

Fudge noted a “lack of leadership” in her call for Perez to step down. 

“If you have the Iowa situation you don’t throw them under the bus, you stand up and you support and you try to fix it. He doesn’t lead on anything,” she said.