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WASHINGTON -- Former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele on Friday became the first African-American chairman of the Republican National Committee, winning a five-way, battle with candidates including former Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell.

"It is time for something completely different, and we're going to bring it to them," said Steele, a former Maryland GOP Chairman. "We're going to bring this party to every corner, every boardroom, every neighborhood, every community."

Blackwell's campaign had been endorsed by conservative leaders like Family Research Council President Tony Perkins and Phyllis Schlafly of the Eagle Forum, but it never caught fire among the 168 RNC members voting on the chairmanship.