The former chair of Mississippi’s Democratic Party has filed a lawsuit seeking to reinstate himself as its leader, arguing that he was improperly ousted in July.
Tyree Irving, a former appellate judge who had chaired the state party since 2020, was voted out by a majority of party officials at a July 6 emergency meeting. Now Irving, who had announced his resignation ahead of the vote before reversing course, says the meeting violated the state party’s constitution and should be invalidated.
The petition for that meeting said committee members needed to address “the long-standing and repeated actions of malfeasance and misfeasance of the Chair of the Mississippi Democratic Party.” The members said an angry email Irving sent to another party official could have jeopardized funding from the Democratic National Committee to support gubernatorial candidate Brandon Presley.
In the lawsuit filed in Hinds County Chancery Court on Wednesday, Irving and some committee members said the meeting didn’t afford him due process or allow his allies sufficient opportunities to challenge the legality of the proceeding.
Source : AP News