But the announcement was quickly eclipsed by the group trying to pound home a message: Republicans and minorities share the same values and the party welcomes them.

Tom Hori, chairman of the Utah Republican Asian Assembly, was given only a couple of minutes to speak while one Republican after another stepped up to the microphone to hammer their message.

"The Republican Party is the party for everyone," said state Sen. James Evans, R-Salt Lake City.

"The Republican Party has done a great job in terms of diversity," said Winston Wilkinson, National Republican Committee chairman for Utah.

Top officeholders like Congressmen Chris Cannon and Rob Bishop, and Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, who greeted the afternoon crowd with "Buenos d'as," spoke of belonging to the "party of Lincoln," and made reference to the freeing of slaves, to a party that gave women the right to vote and one of tolerance and inclusion.

However, the message the Republicans were trying to promote may not be resonating. According to The Associated Press, polls that show black voters nationwide favor John Kerry 8-1 over President Bush. After the news conference, some of the Republicans conceded that Democrats enjoy support from the majority of minority voters.

Cannon said the Thursday that the event was an effort to make inroads.

"We have to reach out," he said, mentioning that some Republicans are backing "immigration reform," and that Republicans are trying to lure away blacks unhappy with Democrats.

While the group touted the formation of Latino, black, Pacific Islander and now Asian American assemblies, American Indians weren't mentioned at the gathering.