The chair of the Alabama Democratic Party, in a letter Tuesday, vilified the state’s most successful Democratic politician of the past decade as intra-party squabbling continues.

In the letter, Chair Randy Kelley said he was combatting “misinformation” in the aftermath of state Democrats changing its bylaws last month.

In defending those changes, Kelley took aim at former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones – who served from 2017-2020 — as well as Thomas Perez, the former chair of the Democratic National Committee.

Specifically, Kelley charged that – in pushing for multiple new caucuses — Jones and Perez were engaged in a “racist plot to divide, dilute, undermine and weaken the Black vote” on the State Democratic Executive Committee.

The SDEC eliminated those new caucuses in May, removing their authority to nominate at-large members to ensure representation proportionate to Alabama Democratic voters.

Neither Jones nor Perez immediately responded Wednesday to a request for comment.

The caucuses removed last month ended specific representation for LGBTQ+, people with disabilities and young people (ages 18-35).

“Because an unshakeable and unified Black vote elected Nancy Worley chair and me as vice chair of the Alabama Democratic Party against the objections of Doug Jones and Thomas Perez in 2018, this racially motivated plot was hatched to nullify the gains made by Black Democrats in the settlement of the Hawthorne v. Baker case,” Kelley wrote.

“It was wrong then and it continued to be wrong until we corrected it in the newly adopted bylaws.”

Democrats hold no statewide office in Alabama and Republicans maintain a supermajority in both chambers of the state legislature. Jones surprised Roy Moore in the 2017 special Senate election with a narrow victory in the aftermath of sexual abuse charges against Moore.

Moore has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Kelley’s addressed his two-page letter to Jaime Harrison, chair of the DNC, as well as other DNC leaders and the SDEC. The DNC in 2019 ordered Alabama Democrats to change its bylaws that led to the creation of the new caucuses.

Following the Alabama Democrats changes last month, Harrison said in a tweet he was troubled and that the DNC was looking into it.

In responding in the letter to what he described as “misinformation,” Kelley wrote, “Because a lie unanswered is a lie believed. The best way to kill a lie is to tell the truth. No lie should live forever.”

Other issues covered by Kelley was the representation of youth/young adults in the party as well as representation of LGBTQ+ and denying the qualifying fee for SDEC elections is a “poll tax” along with the establishment of standing committees.

“We are committed to ensuring that the minority will be heard but we are equally committed that the majority will prevail,” Kelley wrote.

“If the DNC would treat Alabama like it treats the other states, we could eventually build a strong and effective Democratic Party in Alabama, second to none. ‘Let not your heart be troubled.’

“Please understand that we cannot fight the Republicans during the daytime and fight Democrats at night and build a successful Democratic Party.”