Mitt Romney, the presumptive U.S. Republican presidential nominee, will address the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Wednesday at its annual convention in Houston, Texas.

Romney's speech before the nation's oldest civil rights group is aimed at drawing support from African American voters, who, in polls, overwhelmingly favor incumbent President Barack Obama, the first black U.S. president. Observers say it is important for Romney to reach out to the African American community, which is a core Democratic voting bloc.

One of the issues the NAACP will address at this year's convention is minority voting rights. The group says new laws in many states that require citizens to have photo identification cards in order to vote are unfairly targeted at blacks and Hispanics.

Romney will use his speech to focus on the 14.4 percent unemployment rate among African Americans, which is far above the 8.2 percent national average.

President Obama addressed the group during his 2008 White House campaign, but will not appear this year. Vice President Joe Biden will address the convention on Thursday.

Among the major issues being discussed at this year's convention is voting rights