Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) says being in a congressional minority under the Trump administration will not be a time-consuming occupation.

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Ellison, who is running for the Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairmanship, has faced criticism from some who say running the DNC should be a full-time job.

Ellison on Friday expressed some openness to leaving Congress to focus solely on the DNC, but said there's no reason he couldn't do both.



“I’m in the process of deciding this issue of whether I can perform both roles,” Ellison said at meeting of Democratic state chairmen, according to The New York Times.



“All there is to do is to vote ‘no,’ ” he said of his congressional duties, while promising that “every other moment” would be spent strengthening and rebuilding the party.



The topic of time dedication to the DNC came up after former committee chairman Howard Dean on Friday withdrew from the chairmanship race.



Before making his announcement, Dean maintained that rebuilding the committee would require tremendous effort and must be viewed as a full-time job.

Jaime Harrison, a Democratic chair of South Carolina and another contestant for the DNC chairmanship, criticized Ellison's remarks, arguing that combating Trump and the Republicans will be "a full-time job."

The contest for the DNC chair is set to be decided in February.