David Duke wants the world to know that he supports Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison’s attempt to become the next chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

The former leader of the Ku Klux Klan likely complicated Mr. Ellison’s professional goals Monday by backing his efforts while alluding to claims by critics that he is anti-Semitic.

“Keith Ellison, Sally Boynton Brown or Jehmu Greene would all be excellent choices — I really like Keith though… I mean, at least he knows,” Mr. Duketweeted.

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The “at least he knows” remark appears to be a reference to Mr. Ellison’s past with the Nation of Islam and comments about Louis Farrakhan. Charges of bigotry, which the congressman denies, have dogged him since he started running for the coveted DNC job.

“If you go back to his positions, his papers, his speeches, the way he has voted, he is clearly an anti-Semite and anti-Israel individual,” Democratic donor Haim Saban said Dec. 2 while at the Brookings Institution’s annual Saban Forum in the nation’s capital, CNN reported. “Words matter and actions matter more. Keith Ellison would be a disaster for the relationship between the Jewish community and the Democratic Party.”

Mr. Ellison has been endorsed by Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and the AFL-CIO.

Candidates vying for the position will find out their fate Feb. 23 in Atlanta during a vote by a 447-member body of DNC members.