NASHVILLE, Tenn (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Following disagreements with the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, the GOP is seeking a new location for their 2020 convention, to be held in August, with Nashville being one of the cities considered.
Other locations being considered include Las Vegas; Nevada, Jacksonville, Florida and Orlando, Florida.
RNC officials are expected to tour the city on Thursday, June 4, with Governor Bill Lee.
Lee has said his office is in the early stages of conversations with the RNC concerning the event, but that he welcomes the chance to host the convention.
“Well I can tell them that Nashville is the best place in America to have a convention,” said Lee. “We certainly would be interested in welcoming that to our city. It would be a great opportunity for us to build upon the economic recovery that’s already occurring.”
While the convention was originally to be held at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has expressed hesitance to move forward with the event as planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, asking the RNC to adjust their plans and take safety precautions.
“We had appreciated your earlier acknowledgements that a successful and safe convention would need to be scaled back to protect the health of participants as well as North Carolinians. Unfortunately, it appears that now has changed,” wrote Cooper in a letter to RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and President Marcia Lee Kelly.
“As much as we want the conditions surrounding COVID-19 to be favorable enough for you to hold the Convention you describe in late August, it is very unlikely. Neither public health officials nor I will risk the health and safety of North Carolinians by providing the guarantee you seek,” Cooper continued.”
According to a report by CNN, a final decision has yet to be reached, though a compromise between the groups has become unlikely.
The president weighed in on the dispute Tuesday, June 3, via Twitter, saying that Governor Cooper was, “still in Shelter-in-Place mode,” and that the GOP will be “forced to seek another State to host the 2020 Republican National Convention.”
Had long planned to have the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, a place I love. Now, @NC_Governor Roy Cooper and his representatives refuse to guarantee that we can have use of the Spectrum Arena – Spend millions of dollars, have everybody arrive, and…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 3, 2020
…millions of dollars, and jobs, for the State. Because of @NC_Governor, we are now forced to seek another State to host the 2020 Republican National Convention.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 3, 2020
Due to contracts with the city, the GOP is required to hold some aspects of the event in Charlotte; however, Trump’s nomination and speech, as well as some other events, will be held in another location. It is not known at this time what aspect of the convention will remain in North Carolina.