Republicans eye moving some convention events outdoors

With coronavirus cases surging in Florida, Republicans are planning to move the three nights of their national convention from an indoor arena to an outdoor venue in Jacksonville, but it’s still unclear how many people will be allowed to attend the events, people familiar with the discussions said Tuesday.

Officials met Monday night to discuss shifting the events of Aug. 25-27 out of the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, where the indoor program was scheduled to take place, including President Donald Trump’s acceptance speech on the final night. The two outdoor options they have been examining are near the arena, the people familiar with the discussions said. Trump often shifts positions, and officials emphasized that the plans could change.

Officials remain uncertain about whether a capacity crowd would be allowed to attend outdoor events, or if there would be restrictions to prevent people from being too close to one another.

The plan to move the activities outdoors was made after a meeting that Trump held with political advisers on Monday evening. It’s a change from what Trump had envisioned when he forced the Republican National Committee to abandon plans in Charlotte, North Carolina, because officials there refused to guarantee the type of pre-coronavirus event the president wanted, absent restrictions on social distancing.

But as Florida deals with a new outbreak of virus infections, Jacksonville presents more serious challenges than Charlotte did.