RNC chairman appears at Ohio Urban League meeting

CINCINNATI (AP) — Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus assured participants at a civil rights organization conference today that the GOP is making a serious, determined effort to build ties with minority voters.

At a National Urban League meeting in Cincinnati, Priebus said Republicans have added engagement staff in various states, including swing-state Ohio, to help reach out to black voters.

“So we want you to know, desperately, that the Republican Party is listening, we want a relationship, we want to fight for everybody in this country,” Priebus said.

Priebus spoke ahead of a planned appearance by Vice President Joe Biden. It’s Biden’s second speech to a major civil rights group this week. The Democrat spoke Wednesday at the NAACP convention in Las Vegas, decrying a wave of voter-restriction efforts.

Black voters overwhelmingly backed Barack Obama in his two presidential elections.

Urban League president Marc Morial said the nonpartisan organization likes a diverse discussion and wants to keep up a dialogue with Republicans.

Republican U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who’s also been trying to reach out to minorities, will speak at the conference Friday.