Mary Mancini is administered the oath of office after her election as chairwoman of the Tennessee Democratic Party in Nashville on Jan. 10, 2015. (AP Photo/Erik Schelzig)

By Ryan Poe of The Commercial Appeal

The Shelby County Democratic Party was forcibly disbanded Friday, less than three months before the Nov. 8 elections, punctuating years of bitter in-fighting that have recently revolved around former chairman Bryan Carson.

Tennessee Democratic Party chairwoman Mary Mancini said she notified SCDP chairman Michael Pope in a letter Friday that she had chosen to "de-certify" the state's largest county party, effectively disbanding it.

"Shelby County is very valuable to the Democratic party because there are some good and active Democrats in this county," she said. "The decision was made because the Shelby County Democratic Party was not supporting, engaging and encouraging all those good and active Democrats."

In the letter, she said the TNDP would work with local Democrats to "determine their own needs, evaluate the effectiveness of past bylaws and leadership, elect officers and executive committee members, and enact reforms that bring in new people and build a strong grassroots organization."

Corey Strong, a state party executive committee member representing Memphis, said a party whose main purpose was to organize support around electing Democratic candidates had been rendered ineffective by internal issues, as displayed in past elections.

Most recently, county party members have quarrelled about how to handle allegations that former chairman Carson embezzled more than $25,000 in his tenure. At the direction of Mancini, SCDP chairman Pope approved a $6,000 settlement with Carson, even though the county executive committee had already approved a resolution to file charges against Carson, leading to shouting matches at recent committee meetings.

Strong said the party was being disbanded because it wasn't "living up to its purpose."

"This is not about an individual," he said. "This is about a systemic inability to meet the party's own charter and the minimum requirements of the state party."

He said state executive committee members from Memphis were the ones who pushed Mancini to decertify the party because they didn't want the party to "flounder on the local level."

Carson and his mother, Gale Jones Carson, are both members of the state executive committee.

Strong said the party would be reorganized, possibly as early as November, under the supervision of local elected Democrats. The party's money would be moved into a trust until the party is reconstituted.

A meeting with party stakeholders is scheduled in two weeks, Mancini said.

Shelby County is losing its Democratic party as operatives on both sides of the aisle begin gearing up for the general election this fall, but Strong doubted voters or candidates would be able to tell a difference.

"We don't think it will have a significant impact because the county wasn't doing anything anyway," he said.

Del Gill, a thorn in Mancini's side, was a driving force behind several recent resolutions targeting Carson, including a resolution declaring Carson a non-bona fide Democrat. Gill also unsuccessfully tried on Aug. 11 to pass a resolution to censure SCDP chairman Pope for signing the settlement agreement with Carson.

Pope declined to comment. Carson also declined to comment for this story, but previously said receipts were missing because of poor bookkeeping, not because he'd embezzled any money.

The Tennessee GOP swiftly condemned the decision to disband the county party Friday, and renewed past calls for an investigation into the accusations against Carson.

"With allegations flying that $25,000 from donors has gone missing, the TNDP's answer is to simply sweep the issue under the rug. That's inexcusable," executive director Brent Leatherwood said in the statement.

Mancini said the Carson matter was already resolved, in all transparency, in the recent settlement.

Gill, who was elected Aug. 11 as second vice chair of the party, the party's No. 3 position, said Mancini's de-certification letter was another example of her overstepping her bounds as TNDP chair. In her letter, Mancini referenced the party's bylaws, but Gill said he disagreed with her interpretation, and hinted that legal action could be on the horizon. He said she couldn't disband the SCDP without a vote by the state party executive committee.

"Nowhere in the bylaws does it talk about being de-certified," he said.

Gill said he would continue to be involved in the party, whether old or new.

"I'm still a Democrat," he added.

Strong said the Democratic leaders and stakeholders would look at the reasons behind the party's dysfunction and could take steps, including changing the bylaws, to streamline the party's operations.

The Shelby County Young Democrats are now Memphis' only county-wide, chartered Democratic group.