City pushes to host Republican National Convention in 2024
Budget projections, pitch readied ahead of visit
Officials trying to lure the 2024 Republican National Convention to Milwaukee say they are working with a projected budget of $65 million to stage the event and have already secured at least $10 million to $20 million in commitments.
“We’re chasing this purely for the economic health of our city,” said Peggy Williams-Smith, the president and chief executive of VISIT Milwaukee who is helping spearhead the effort.
The race to host the event is entering its final stages with three cities in the running: Milwaukee, Salt Lake City and Nashville.
Pittsburgh, which initially made the cut of four finalists, is no longer contending.
The Republican National Committee’s site selection panel is due to visit Milwaukee as early as next week. A decision on which city will host the presidential nominating convention is expected to be confirmed by the summer.
RNC senior adviser Richard Walters declared it was “premature to announce anyone as the front-runner.”
“We look forward to continuing a competitive bidding process and delivering an incredible convention,” he said in a statement.
During last week’s RNC winter meeting in Salt Lake City, a delegation from Milwaukee hosted a reception that included such things as a beer garden, fish fry and Wisconsin supper club selections.
And yes, there were three Harleys in the room.
“Ours was a great presentation that left a lot of the folk who were in attendance knowing that Milwaukee is prepared to host a wonderful gathering in 2024,” said Gerard Randall, a Republican Party of Wisconsin vice chairman who is helping coordinate the bid.
Top GOP donors Ted Kellner and Kathryn (Murph) Burke were in the delegation, according to a photo tweeted by Milwaukee restaurant owner Omar Shaikh.
Others in the delegation included Timothy Sheehy, president of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce; Marty Brooks, president and chief executive of the Wisconsin Center District; and Kristine Hillmer, president and chief executive of the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.
Milwaukee’s organizers are seeking to present the city as ready to take on the challenge. The city won the right to host the Democrats in 2020 but the convention was downsized dramatically by the pandemic.
Officials now envision using much of the same footprint Democrats had outlined in 2020. Fiserv Forum would be the main hub with an expanded Wisconsin Center serving as a key facility
for party meetings. UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena and the Miller High Life Theatre are also important elements of the bid.
Randall said there is adequate hotel capacity for delegates and their guests to stay “within a short radius of Fiserv Forum.”
In 2020, Democrats, who have a larger number of delegates, had planned to house state delegations in hotels as far away as Rosemont, Ill., outside O’Hare International Airport.
“I think we’re able to make a strong case that those delegates will not have a significant distance to travel between the convention hall and their hotels,” Randall said. “I think the other question that clearly is on their mind is whether or not we can offer enough spaces for entertainment.”
Randall said the city’s restaurants, museums and the Summerfest grounds can more than accommodate and entertain the delegates.
Last month, a small group of RNC officials and advisers visited the city to go over plans, meeting at the Northwestern Mutual Tower and Commons.
In one session, they heard from Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow, who chairs the state Republican Party, and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, a Democrat.
“We talked about what we can provide as a city (and county) for the RNC,” Crowley said.
He said Milwaukee and the surrounding region were capable of hosting the event.
“I think that everyone understands what happened in 2020,” Crowley said. “We put in a lot of work. When you think about the security perimeter, what we needed to do, what needed to be available, the businesses that stepped up. It’s really showing and making the case, we not only want this, we’re ready for this.”
Milwaukee has also said it wants another shot hosting Democrats in 2024, expressing interest in the convention after invitations were sent to 20 cities by the Democratic National Committee.