Steele gaining blacks' support

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The Maryland Democratic Party's traditional support among blacks appears to be slipping, now that hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons -- who has helped register thousands of Democratic voters -- has endorsed Republican Michael S. Steele for the U.S. Senate.

Mr. Simmons is scheduled to hold a fundraiser tonight at Baltimore's Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park for Mr. Steele, the lieutenant governor and the first black to win a statewide office in Maryland.

"Russell Simmons is one of the leading progressive voices in America," said Donna Brazile, who managed Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign.

"This is a major endorsement for Lieutenant Governor Steele that will help him attract young people, as well as black voters," Ms. Brazile said. "Once again, this should serve as a wake-up call to Democrats not to take their most loyal constituents and voters for granted."

Mr. Simmons, who promoted the rap group Run-DMC in the 1980s and has since built a media and clothing empire, helped the Democratic Party register hundreds of thousands of voters via the Hip Hop Summit Action Network, which he co-founded in 2001.

Mr. Simmons "definitely represents the younger generation. ... He's a pioneer, and hip-hop has become one thing that defines black youths in this country," said Tyrell Ruff, a 19-year old Baltimore native.

"Russell Simmons ... would definitely get some votes for Mr. Steele. If you look at black kids in the city, many of them would probably be wearing something he made," said Mr. Ruff, a sophomore at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn.

Cathy Hughes, founder and chairman of Radio One, the seventh-largest national radio conglomerate and the largest aimed at black audiences, also is supporting Mr. Steele and will attend tonight's event.

"That's huge," said Eric Nelson, a 34-year old rapper and single father from Baltimore. "The tide is shifting."

"These are both people who not only built extremely successful companies but companies that are actively involved in their communities," Steele spokesman Doug Heye said. "It goes to what Mr. Steele talks about in building legacy wealth."