Charlotte City Attorney Patrick Baker

June 5. NC legislators will file a bill that supports full attendance at the Republican National Convention in Charlotte in August, the latest effort to keep the RNC from moving to another state. This comes after President Trump said he would move the event because Gov. Cooper won’t guarantee that 19,000 people would be allowed in the Spectrum Center due to the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 concerns aside, the convention is worth between $150 million and $200

SEN. THOM TILLIS

million to the local economy, and some rubs off here in Lake Norman. It would also be a showcase for NC Sen. Thom Tillis, a former Cornelius Town Commissioner who now makes his home in Huntersville, who faces a challenging election.

Charlotte City Attorney Patrick Baker offered a glimmer of hope at the end of this statement:

“This morning, the City Attorney and members of his staff met with representatives of the Republican National Committee, the Local Host Committee, the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority and the Charlotte Hornets to discuss the current status of preparations for the 2020 Republican National Convention.  During that meeting, RNC representatives confirmed that at this point in time, they intend to locate the entirety of the business portion of the Convention in Charlotte.  What those intentions mean in terms of the number of visitors coming to Charlotte, the length of time and the amount of space needed to properly host the business portion of the convention is unclear with the RNC representatives agreeing to provide the parties with further information as their plans continue to develop.  It was understood by the parties that some of the Convention events that were originally set to occur in Charlotte may be relocated to another community outside of North Carolina. The parties agreed to reconvene the conversation on Monday, June 8.”