In 3 Weeks, Charlotte Is Back In The RNC Spotlight. What’s Going To Happen?

By Steve Harrison and Lisa Worf | August 4, 2020

*Will Charlotte’s Westin hotel host all of the 2020 RNC?*

On this episode of Inside Politics, we look at the (much smaller) Republican National Convention, which is now less than three weeks away in Charlotte.

After the GOP scrapped the Jacksonville part of its convention, Republicans are left with a “business-only” Charlotte meeting that’s scheduled to begin Friday, Aug. 20 and end with the nomination of President Trump on Monday morning, Aug. 24.

But there are still lots of questions about what this convention will look like – and even where it will be.

The RNC hasn’t announced which hotel (or hotels) will host the event, although the Westin next to the Charlotte Convention Center is a likely destination.

The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority said on Monday that it’s working with the RNC, but hasn’t signed a contract for the venue yet.

There are also questions about health and safety. How can the RNC bring a few hundred people to Charlotte while Gov. Roy Cooper has limited indoor gatherings to no more than 10 people?

Before the GOP moved most of the convention to Jacksonville, Cooper’s administration asked the GOP to send a detailed health and safety plan for the convention. Cooper and Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen said the plan wasn’t good enough, and that led to the RNC moving to Florida.

This time, the GOP plans to bring at least 336 delegates to Charlotte. But the state and Mecklenburg County haven’t said whether they can all meet in person, and whether they must stay six feet apart and wear masks.

North Carolina’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, Mandy Cohen, hasn’t said yet whether the RNC delegates can all meet together for the late-August convention.

DHHS said it expects a health and safety plan from the RNC later this week.

Will Charlotte have to provide extra security for the event? City Attorney Patrick Baker sent the RNC a letter on July 20 stating firmly that the city has already spent nearly $17 million for the event – and doesn’t plan on spending another dollar.

There was speculation that President Trump would give his acceptance speech in Charlotte, but White House adviser Kellyanne Conway nixed that idea on WBT radio last week.

In this episode, Lisa Worf and Steve Harrison talk about these and other questions with Erik Spanberg, managing editor of the Charlotte Business Journal.

Click here to subscribe to the Inside Politics podcast (and to give the podcast a rating/review in your favorite podcast app).

Want more? You can sign up here for our weekly Inside Politics newsletter, written by Steve Harrison.

Have a question about the 2020 RNC in Charlotte? Ask us below.