By Jarrett Renshaw

(Reuters) – Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison is not expected to seek re-nomination in the party’s leadership vote early next year, according to two sources familiar with his thinking.

Harrison, who was criticized for strongly supporting Joe Biden’s efforts to stay in the 2024 race before withdrawing in July, signaled his intention to leave his post before Tuesday’s disappointing results for Democrats, officials said. indicated the sources.

Harrison, 48, is expected to hold an all-staff meeting Wednesday to discuss the results, why they fell short of his public expectations and a potential timeline for a leadership vote, which is expected before April, the sources said.

Anger and soul-searching gripped the Democratic Party early Wednesday morning, after Vice President Kamala Harris suffered an election defeat to Republican Donald Trump that left some party officials and voters stunned.

Harrison did not respond to a request for comment.

Harrison’s potential successors include Governors Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Phil Murphy of New Jersey, as well as Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams and Ken Martin, who leads the Minnesota state party, the sources told Reuters.

Harrison was nominated to serve as DNC chair by Biden following his 2020 victory and was elected to the position in January 2021. He is part of an influential group of Black Democrats in South Carolina that includes Congressman James Clyburn and current White House official Stephen Benjamin.

Harrison helped usher in a new primary electoral map for the Democratic Party that pushed less diverse Iowa out of the top spot and replaced it with South Carolina and its large black population.

He was also the public face of efforts to keep Biden atop the Democratic ticket as the president faced pressure to step down after a poor debate in June that raised questions about his age and mental health.

(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw; editing by Susan Heavey and Deepa Babington)