WASHINGTON (Reuters) The Republican Party picked its first black chairman Friday as it elected former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele to rebuild the party after a string of devastating defeats.
Steele, 50, is regarded within the party as a skilled speaker who can help bring the Republican message to blacks, Hispanics, suburbanites and other fast-growing groups that have shunned the party in recent years.
He has argued that as a high-profile Republican in a heavily Democratic state he knows how to talk to voters outside of the party's Southern stronghold.
As Republican National Committee chairman, Steele will have to find a way to counter Democrat Barack Obama, the country's first black president, as well as Democratic leaders who control both houses of Congress.
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I guess the GOP is trying to catch up to the times...who woulda thunk...first a woman VP running mate...now this.