Wisconsin GOP Chair to Challenge Michael Steele as Head of RNC

Add Reince Priebus to the list of people seeking to unseat Michael Steele as head of the Republican National Committee.

After considering a run for weeks, the Wisconsin Republican Party chairman announced Monday that he will enter the race for the top spot at the GOP's national leadership panel, The Washington Post reported.

"There is too much at risk for our Party and, more importantly, for our country," Priebus wrote in an e-mail to supporters. "The RNC must be at its best during this next election cycle. "That is why I am running for Chairman."

Priebus vowed to keep strict control of the purse strings at the RNC, which has cash flow problems after racking up big debts during the midterm election year.

The e-mail did not mention Steele. Priebus, who stepped down as general council for the RNC on Sunday, was chair of Steele's 2009 bid to run the committee and the two are longtime allies.

Meanwhile Steele, whose tenure as chairman has been rocky, has yet to announce whether he will run again.

The non-partisan Rothenberg Political Report said Monday that Priebus has "picked up considerable support from influential members of the committee who are fed up with Steele" and could be considered the race's favorite.

Priebus joins two other official candidates: former Michigan Republican Party chairman Saul Anuzis and Ann Wagner, the former RNC co-chairwoman.

Other names being floated are Gentry Collins, the ex-political director of the RNC; Carly Fiorina, the former Hewlett Packard CEO and unsuccessful California Senate candidate; and Maria Cino, who was CEO of the 2008 Republican convention in St. Paul, Minn.

The election for RNC chairman will take place in Washington in early January.