RNC FAQ: All you need to know about the GOP convention. And what about that helicopter?
There won’t be 50,000 visitors, crowded streets or the economic boost once seen as a lifeline for a struggling hospitality industry. So exactly what can Charlotte expect when the Republican National Convention begins next week?
Like this week’s mostly virtual Democratic event, it will be a convention like no other as both parties contend with the COVID-19 pandemic.
After a roller-coaster summer that included a whirlwind fling with Jacksonville, Fla., the GOP convention continues to take shape. Organizers have yet to release the full schedule of the event, less than a week away.
What we know is that the Charlotte portion has shrunk to a few hours next Monday. Here’s what to expect.
So what’s happening in Charlotte?
The formal nominations of President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence will take place in the Richardson Ballroom at the Charlotte Convention Center on Monday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
A total of 336 delegates, six from each state and territory, will gather. After the nominations, the official business should be over by mid-afternoon, after which delegates will leave town. They’ll all spend Sunday night at the Westin Hotel.
The Republican National Committee also will be in town this weekend, holding private meetings starting Friday at the Westin.
Will it be safe?
Convention officials submitted a 42-page plan to the governor’s office that called for health screening to begin before delegates even arrive. Once here masks will be “a condition of participation,” they said, and ballroom chairs will be six feet apart.
In addition, there will be daily “symptom tracking” of delegates and the other 150 or so expected guests. Should somebody come down with the disease, special electronic badges would help local health officials trace people with whom the person had been in close contact.
“It inherently has risks just because we’re in the middle of a pandemic,” Dr. Jeff Runge, the convention’s health director, told the Observer. “I think it’s going to be very safe with everything we’ve put into place.”
What about traffic?
Streets immediately around the convention center — South College, East Stonewall, Brevard and MLK — will be closed from 6 p.m. Sunday to about 6 a.m. Tuesday. That includes the southbound I-277 exit ramp onto South College St.
No parking will be allowed on the closed streets. Local traffic will have to go through vehicle checkpoints. People going to Whole Foods on Stonewall Street as well as the apartments above will have to access the parking garage from South Boulevard or on foot.
Light rail will be closed from the Carson Street station to 7th Street station from 5:15 a.m. Sunday to 5:15 a.m. Tuesday.
Most uptown businesses will remain open.
What about protests?
A few months ago, the city was braced for protests during the Republican convention. Now, with Trump not expected, it’s unclear whether they’ll show up.
I heard something about helicopters.
Don’t get worried but the National Nuclear Security Administration will be testing for background radiation around the convention site on Thursday and Friday.
A low-flying helicopter will fly in a grid pattern over uptown and Yorkmount area to test the existing radiation. The Secret Service calls it a standard precaution. It said it was announcing the flights so people “are not alarmed.”
What about the usual convention spectacle?
Some vendors may be hawking pro- or anti-Trump gear, but don’t expect anything like Charlotte saw during the 2012 Democratic convention.
That year you were likely to run into news teams or celebrities on uptown streets. Restaurants and bars played host to cable news shows while ImaginOn was home to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. This year networks are expected to cover the nominations but not stick around town. And no celebrities are expected.
Can I watch?
C-SPAN and the networks are expected to provide coverage.
The nominations also will be streamed on the convention’s social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, Twitch, YouTube, Amazon Prime and Amazon Alexa.
So what happens during the rest of the RNC?
The convention reportedly moves on to Washington and other sites.
Though no formal schedule has been released, news sites such as CNBC have reported that many events will take place at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium near the Trump International Hotel in downtown Washington.
Pence is expected to deliver his acceptance speech at Baltimore’s Fort McHenry on Aug. 26. The next night the president will make his speech, apparently at the White House. Politico reported the week’s theme will be “Honoring the Great American Story.”
Will the convention showcase any NC candidates?
That’s unclear. Conventions usually showcase a party’s up-and-comers or candidates in tight races. The 2012 GOP convention in Tampa gave coveted speaking slots to N.C. Republicans Mark Meadows, David Rouzer and Richard Hudson.
This year, Roll Call says such candidates are likely to be casualties of the shortened conventions.
Will Trump get a convention bounce?
Probably not, or at least not much.
Historically candidates have gotten a bounce in polls after four nights that dominated prime time and daily news reports. Democrat Bill Clinton got a 16-point bounce after the 1992 convention, according to the site 538.
But the bounces have gotten progressively smaller for both parties. And this year, with Americans polarized and conventions virtual, there may be less space for a candidate to bounce.
Real Clear Politics national polling average Monday showed Democrat Joe Biden at 50% and Trump at 42.5%. Few voters are still undecided.
This story was originally published August 17, 2020 at 3:50 PM with the headline "RNC FAQ: All you need to know about the GOP convention. And what about that helicopter?."
