The High Profile Black Republican Candidacies of Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele, Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell and Hall of Famer Lynn Swann 12+

📒 Specifically, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of three statewide blackRepublican candidacies in 2006 in Maryland, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. During the 2006 midtermelection cycle, the Republican Party recruited and gave strong support to three high-profileAfrican-American statewide candidates. Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell and formerPittsburgh Steeler star and television sports broadcaster Lynn Swann campaigned for their state'sgovernorship in Ohio and Pennsylvania, respectively. Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele viedfor a vacated United States Senate seat in Maryland. After five decades of miserable levels ofsupport from black voters and numerous initiatives to increase its share of the African-Americanelectorate, the GOP estimated that credible black Republican candidacies would substantiallyimprove its image among African-American voters and, thus, garner a larger share of the blackvote.State Representative James White