Tim Scott & Alan West Historic Win a Sign the Republican Party Reaching Out to Blacks

Who ever said blacks, Latinos, Indians and other ethnicities couldn't win elections as Republicans? Well, that myth has been dispelled and I am very encouraged by the gains of black Republican candidates. Thumbs up to Tim Scott from South Carolina, who went on to defeat the son of one-time segregationist Strom Thurmond and become the first black candidate since Reconstruction to represent the state of South Carolina in Congress. Next came Florida veteran Allen West, who ousted a two-term Democrat to represent the GOP in Congress. He became the first black Republican elected to Congress from Florida since a former slave, Josiah Walls, served two terms in the 1870s. Birmingham attorney Terri Sewell was victorious last night and became the first black woman to be elected to the 7th Congressional District seat in Alabama, representing the Democratic Party, a worthy accomplishment.

The groundbreaking achievements for the GOP continued with the historic wins of Nikki Haley, an Indian-American, who is now the governor-elect of South Carolina. Susana Martinez made history in New Mexico, where she was elected as the nation's first female Hispanic governor and Brian Sandoval became Nevada's first Hispanic governor, all Republicans.

I echo the sentiments of Richard Ivory, a black Republican consultant and founder of hiphoprepublican.com, in his interview with the Atlanta Journal Constitution, that "color is becoming less of an issue." "There was a time when the white electorate saw race first and made judgments based on this alone. While black Republicans and Obama disagree ideologically, both are candidates whose message surpassed pigment." While I agree with his statement in theory, the argument can be made that President Barack Obama's historic win, pushed the Republican Party to changing its landscape from predominantly white to a more diverse party by actively seeking out qualified minority candidates. It should be noted, however, that these victorious Republican minority candidates don't embrace an agenda favored by blacks and Latinos. They were also elected in majority-white districts. That speaks volumes that it's not about the color of one's skin but about what one brings to the table, coupled with electability, which a candidate such as Georgia's Michael Thurmond lacked. Let's acknowledge Marco Rubio's win in Florida. The Cuban-American will replace the retiring Mel Martinez, another conservative Cuban.

We have to be cautiously optimistic with the trend we have seen last night for minorities in the Republican Party. There is still room for improvement and advancement, but we are off to a good start. While I don't consider myself a Republican and the Democrats have lost my vote for the most part, I do like what I see and I may very well continue to vote with the Republican Party, as long as they look out for Main Street and continue to embrace people of color. We have been so distrustful of the Republican Party and its fringe elements because some Democrats say we must vote with them because they have our best interests at heart, but that is clearly far from the truth. The Democratic Party has taken the black vote for granted time and time again.