Republican National Commitee Chairman Reince Priebus admitted on Sunday that the party’s presidential nominee will have be “about perfect” in order to win the White House in 2016.
On CBS’ “Face the Nation,” anchor Bob Schieffer suggested to Priebus that the electoral map currently gives Democrats an edge in national elections. Priebus agreed.
“Well, there’s no doubt that we have to be about perfect,” Priebus said. “And the other side can be about good. And so the fact is that we do have the higher burden.”
Priebus said, though, that the GOP has taken steps to appeal to minority voters, a demographic the party has struggled to capture in recent elections.
“But it means not just showing up once every four years, five months before the election,” Priebus said. “It means talking for two and three years, in these communities, about things that we have in common before you go in and sell the final product. That’s what we’re working hard at at the RNC. It’s not the most exciting topic, as far as mechanics. But this is how you win presidential elections. And this is what I’m focused on, as chairman of the board.”
Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul has been the most vocal in the party in terms of minority outreach.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, another presidential candidate, and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who is expected to also declare his own presidential campaign on Monday, are both Cuban-Americans who hope to appeal to Latino voters.
