Steele, they said, would help the party reach out to the minorities, and reverse the xenophobic, anti-immigrant, Rush Limbaugh-style politics of the recent past that had caused it to lose the Hispanic and Asian American vote.
Incoming chairman of the Indian American Republican Council Dino Teppara, who is slated to take over from IARC founder Dr Raghavendra Vijayanagar, said, "The historic election of Michael Steele proves the Republican Party is moving in a new, inclusive direction. Michael Steele is an inspirational speaker, a true grassroots leader who understands the importance of taking our conservative message to every corner of our diverse country." He said the IARC would work with Steele to make sure Indian American Republicans had a seat at the party table.
Steele is perhaps closest to incoming IARC Vice-Chair Dr Sambhu N Banik at whose home he has enjoyed Indian cuisine. Banik recalled that when he first met Steele, then chairman of the Maryland Republican Party, in 2001 "I brought the issue of greater participation by the Asian American community in Republican Party politics. Within just a couple of weeks, he called me and followed up with a letter inviting me to join the Chairman's Coalition Task Force as a member, and to meet with him and propose recommendations."
"It was he who encouraged me to join the Maryland Human Rights Commission and supported me in 2004, and it was he along with Governor Ehrlich who encouraged me to run as a Republican candidate from Montgomery County, and when I was elected as an alternate delegate to the Republican National Convention in New York, Michael Steele played an important role in my selection."
Former Bush administration staffer Suhail Khan said Steele has "time and time again demonstrated an unwavering commitment to preserving freedom, opportunity and prosperity for all Americans", and said his election as party chair "stands as testimony to the Republican Party's commitment to extending our message of opportunity to all who cherish liberty, regardless of race, ethnicity of faith."
Ashok Mago of Dallas, Texas, said, "Michael was elected as chairman of the RNC for the same reasons Bobby Jindal was elected governor of Louisiana -- he is smart, intelligent, energetic, a problem solver and successful. It seems like a candidate's race, ethnicity, nationality and religion is not important anymore," he said.
Longtime GOP activist Dr Sampat Shivangi, of Jackson, Mississippi, said it was fitting that when an African American Democrat had been elected President of the United States, the pick of an African American to head the Republican Party was "the right choice at the right time."
On the basis of his past interactions with Steele, Shivangi said he was convinced that "Michael will go the additional step to welcome Indian Americans into the party, because he is very much aware of us and the contributions we have made to the society at large and the economy."
Dr Piyush Agrawal of Miami, Florida, is another community activist with a history of interactions with Steele.
"We discussed inclusiveness, and at that time the conversations appeared to me just of an academic interest, not knowing what the future may hold. Now, I can only surmise the potential effect of those conversations," he said of the incoming GOP chair.
Agrawal said it was significant that Steele was a centrist. "In today's changing times, no party can survive with extreme views of left or right. There is a law of nature -- regression to the mean, which implies moving to the centre where the majority of the population resides."
Activist Kishan Putta, who had worked on the campaign of GOP presidential candidate Senator John McCain, said "Just as I and thousands of other bipartisan members of Indians for McCain were proud to see Barack Obama sworn in as the first African American president of the United States, we are proud to see Michael Steele elected to chair his party."
He said Indian Americans, generally moderate to conservative, have long felt the Democratic Party is more welcoming to minorities. "Steele's election is a positive reminder," Putta said, "that both parties value the contributions of Indian Americans to our nation."
