'Fight starts here,' DNC leaders tell N.J. members at unity rally

NEWARK -- Urging party unity and collective resistance, national leaders of the Democratic Party rallied in Newark Friday, injecting new urgency as the state faces a gubernatorial race this year.

"The Democratic Party is going everywhere because our mission is not simply to elect a President of the United States, our mission is to elect Democrats up and down the ballot," Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez said before a packed ballroom at the Robert Treat Hotel. "We're going to eliminate political gridlock by leading with our values."

Perez and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee, headlined a rally organized by New Jersey Working Families.

Ellison said their stop in the Garden State was meant to re-energize their base and mend rifts in the party.

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