A contender to be chair of the Democratic National Committee dropped out of the race Saturday and endorsed Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., just days before Democratic officials vote on a leader at the DNC's meeting next week.

"While it was a tremendous honor to run for DNC Chair over the past few months, I am proud to throw my support behind Keith so we can ensure that the next Chair of the DNC is dedicated to investing in and strengthening state parties and ensuring that the DNC is an accountable organization," New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley said in a statement first reported by NBC News. "As I've talked to the DNC membership, it's clear Keith has widespread support, and I know as our next DNC Chair Keith will successfully unite and grow our party."

Ellison said he is "proud" to have Buckley's support. He added that he asked Buckley to "lead our effort to provide the support and resources the state parties need in a new and innovative 57 state strategy."

Ellison was viewed as a front-runner at the beginning of the DNC chairman campaign, but has seen fierce competition from former Labor Secretary Thomas Perez. Last week, Perez announced that of the 224 votes needed to win when votes are cast, he has the support of 180 of 224 DNC members. The threshold a candidate needs to pass in order to win represents just one vote above half the 447 voting members.

Ellison has the backing of some high-profile progressives like Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, as well as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

CNN announced Friday it will host a debate next week for the candidates running for chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

The event in Atlanta is being called "Debate Night: Democratic Leadership Debate" and is scheduled for Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET, just days before Democratic officials vote on a new chairman at the DNC's meeting in the same city Feb. 23-26.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned as DNC chair in July just before the Democratic National Convention, amid the WikiLeaks email controversy that showed Schultz and other Democratic officials scheming to tip the scales in Hillary Clinton's favor in the Democratic presidential primaries. Longtime party official Donna Brazile has been serving as acting chairman ever since.