Republican National Committee officials are considering Nashville and other cities as potential alternative hosts for the 2020 GOP convention, Fox News is told, amid a stalemate with North Carolina officials over whether Charlotte is prepared to hold the nominating event as planned because of the coronavirus crisis.
The 2020 Republican National Convention has been slated to take place in Charlotte, N.C. from August 24 through August 27, but North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has yet to provide “guidance” to the party as to whether the city is prepared to accommodate the event.
RNC SETS DEADLINE FOR NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR TO RESPOND ON CONVENTION PLANS
“President Trump and Chairwoman McDaniel have been clear on our desire to hold our convention in Charlotte but without concrete guidance from Gov. Cooper, planning has been difficult," RNC spokesman Rick Gorka told Fox News. ”Deadlines loom and major decisions need to be made.”
RNC officials are expected to travel to Nashville, Tenn. later this week, Fox News has confirmed, as well as other cities, including Las Vegas, Nev., Orlando, Fla., Jacksonville, Fla., and Georgia. The news was first reported by Politico and confirmed by Fox News.
All of the locations have directly expressed interest in hosting the convention. Party officials told Politico that they will likely visit several of the locations in the coming days.
RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and convention president and CEO Marcia Lee Kelly penned a letter to Cooper over the weekend, giving him a June 3 deadline to provide guidance on whether the party can host a “full” presidential convention in the state as planned.
RNC SENDS PROPOSED SAFETY PROTOCOLS TO NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR FOR GOP CONVENTION
It is unclear, at this point, whether Cooper plans to respond to McDaniel and Kelly by the June 3rd deadline this week.
Some states are openly pitching their cities: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, last week, tweeted that, “Georgia would be honored to safely host” the RNC this summer and asked Trump to consider holding the convention in the state. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has also said, "Florida would love to have the RNC,” citing the possible economic boost.