GOP chairman Steele running for re-election

WASHINGTON – Embattled Republican Party chairman Michael Steele announced Monday that he will seek a second term despite a rocky two years marked by allegations of financial mismanagement and frequent verbal gaffes.

After weighing a decision for weeks as challengers lined up, Steele alerted the 168-member Republican National Committee during an evening conference call that he would run.

“Yes, I have stumbled along the way, but have always accounted to you for such shortcomings. No excuses. No lies. No hidden agenda,” Steele told the committee, according to a text of his remarks he e-mailed to RNC members afterward. “Going forward, I ask for your support and your vote for a second term.”

Steele’s term expires in January.