Forget elite. Look at elite of the areas you are interested.
This means no Harvard. You want a Cornell or Illinois.
Learn about the schools, curriculums.
As a URM , you’re likely in a good position - assuming you have more to you than stats. And you note you are.
So why these schools? Have you been ? Have you studied curriculums ?
If you REA Stanford, you don’t ED to the others which may not hurt. Some say ED is more a timing thing but not a chance increase. Brown, for example. You can apply to a USC as an example, or other EAs that have early merit deadlines.
Ultimately, if you have a favorite then use the early. If you don’t or you are unsure of affordability or your folks wanting to spend what it costs if full pay ($400k-ish), then don’t.
Good luck.