NC’s top health official signals that bid for a packed GOP convention is a non-starter
Facing a mid-week deadline, North Carolina’s top health official signaled Monday that the state would reject a request for a Republican convention that would put 19,000 people in Charlotte’s Spectrum Center with no masks or social distancing.
On Saturday, GOP national chair Ronna McDaniel and convention CEO Marcia Kelly made the request in a letter to Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat. Their letter came a day after President Donald Trump called Cooper and asked that no social distancing or masks be required.
“What we have asked back from the convention organizers is to share with us a plan and that plan should have options in it,” Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen told reporters Monday.
“What we know about the spread of the (coronavirus) is that when you are indoors without face coverings and less than six feet apart, the virus spreads.”
McDaniel and Kelly said they need a go-ahead from the state by Wednesday or “we will immediately need to begin making modifications as to how the Convention will proceed.”
Convention officials did not respond to emails or texts Monday.
For now, the convention is still scheduled to start Aug. 24 in uptown Charlotte. Convention organizers are due to begin a multi-million dollar renovation of the arena in mid-July.
Trump first threatened to move the convention in a Memorial Day tweet. A day later he said he wanted Cooper to guarantee full attendance “within a week.”
Officials in Florida, Georgia and Texas have said they would welcome the convention, though when the site was chosen in 2018 Charlotte was the only serious bidder.
In his conversation with the president last Friday, Cooper suggested a scaled-back convention. The governor is gradually opening the state back up, though indoor gatherings are still restricted to 10 people. Restaurants are not allowed to operate at full capacity and bars are still closed.
Many businesses, particularly in the hard-hit hospitality industry, see the convention as a lifeline. At one point officials expected it to draw 50,000 people to Charlotte.
In a letter to Cooper last week, McDaniel and Kelly outlined eight specific safety measures they plan to take.
They included thermal scans of convention participants prior to boarding buses, a “clean health check” for everybody entering the Spectrum Center, widely available hand sanitizer and daily health questionnaires of participants delivered via apps. They do not include social distancing or masks.
The GOP leaders also said they’re continuing to plan for a full convention, saying “RNC rules require delegates, alternates, elected officials, guests and media.”
In response, Cohen last week asked for more details.
She asked convention officials how many people were expected each night of the convention in Spectrum Center and whether they would be socially distanced. She also asked whether they have a plan for masks, social distancing and other safety measures at the hundreds of parties and events surrounding the convention.
Cohen is expected to respond in writing to the latest Republican request soon.
This story was originally published June 1, 2020 at 3:51 PM with the headline "NC’s top health official signals that bid for a packed GOP convention is a non-starter."
