6 cities looking at 2012 RNC bids

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2012 Democratic National Convention Site Selection News
2012 Republican National Convention Site Selection News

Atlanta is moving forward with its efforts to bid for the 2012 Republican National Convention, with a meeting planned for Nov. 22 to kickstart the effort. Here's the October letter announcing the meeting:

We are excited to announce the formation of the Georgia 2012 Republican National Convention Bid Committee. I wanted to give you an update:

The first meeting of the Committee will be Saturday November 22, 2008.
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After Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine called for Atlanta to host the RNC in 2012 at the 2008 RNC in Minneapolis Minnesota, members of the party have unified behind this effort.

And even better for us, they let us know who the competition is:

Already Republicans in Arizona (Phoenix), Indiana (Indianapolis), Louisiana (New Orleans), and Texas (Dallas) are organized and moving forward with their 2012 bids. All these states have already formed committees - before the close of the 2008 election cycle. In fact, Arizona who is busy trying to elect their US Senator as President, is able to also focus on 2012. New Orleans has already earned the support of the Democrat Mayor, who sent an official delegation to Minnesota to observe and prepare for their bid. Indianapolis is hosting the 2012 Super Bowl and the Indiana state GOP is working with the business community - today - to do both the Super Bowl and the National Convention.

There are also stirrings in San Antonio:

San Antonio was at one time among the cities considered to host the 2008 Democratic and Republican national conventions, but those mega events were eventually awarded to Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul, respectively.

Now some Texas Republican leaders say they would support San Antonio making a bid as a potential host city for the GOP’s 2012 national convention.

San Antonio showed indifference in 2006 when it was among the cities under consideration by both parties for their 2008 national conventions.

That spring, San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger, concerned with the high costs associated with hosting a national political convention, informed officials on both sides of the political aisle that the Alamo City was declining the invitations to bid.

See here and here on why San Antonio dropped out of the 2008 bid process.

Previous posts on Indianapolis and Dallas.

2012 Site Selection Update

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More 2012 convention site selection stirrings. First, an update on Indianapolis:

State GOP officials say Indianapolis has it: the volunteers, the hotel rooms and the appeal to host the 2012 Republican National Convention. But whether they're ready to push for it is another question.

Indiana Republican Party Chairman Murray Clark said that having the 2012 Super Bowl in Indianapolis makes things a bit more complicated.

"I'm more convinced than ever that Indianapolis would be a superb place for a national convention for either party," he said. "Having said that, the 2012 Super Bowl obviously is a big deal for the community, and we certainly wouldn't want to be at cross-purposes with the Super Bowl.

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"We have been encouraged to bid for the 2012 convention by some of the leadership in the party," said Mike McDaniel, chairman of the Indiana Republican Party when it put in a bid to host the 2000 RNC. "They see Indianapolis and Indiana as being readily suited to hold an event of that kind because we have a track record of doing big events well." - IndyStar.com

Washington, DC is also being floated:
Read more...

Following the national political conventions, talk in Washington (or connecting airports) has been unanimous: Democrats and Republicans are united in their displeasure over the convention sites. Much of the talk, however, has not been about anything substantive involving the actual conventions. Instead, conversation has centered on logistics — journalists, delegates, and campaign or party staff having problems finding suitable flights, staying in hotel rooms far from convention sites, and massive amounts of money spent on cab fare.

Most attendees understand the nature of presidential politics. Political parties hold conventions in cities which either fit a theme, such as the 2004 Republican convention held in New York, or large cities in important states and media markets. Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul were both picked for a reason — votes.

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Complaints about Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul point out an important fact — from airports and public transportation to hotel occupancy and convention space itself, few American cities have the infrastructure necessary to successfully host a party political convention. Outside of our largest cities or those that have hosted an NCAA Final Four or Super Bowl, political conventions require more than most cities can handle. Thus, many conventioneers stayed in Littleton instead of Denver, or Eden Prairie and not Minneapolis or St. Paul.

Colorado and Minnesota are important states whose electoral votes are up for grabs. Their selections as convention sites should be no surprise. What is surprising, however, is that cities uniquely qualified to host either political convention — cities in major swing media markets — have not been considered.

Las Vegas specializes in conventions. Few, if any, cities in the world have more hotel rooms than Las Vegas. Hosting a party convention in Las Vegas would not present the challenges most other American cities would face. And there's no question about Nevada’s growing importance electorally.

For obvious reasons, Las Vegas has never been seriously considered. While many Members of Congress and Senators attend various conventions and events in Las Vegas, a party convention in “Sin City” may cause more anxiety for party leaders than a Loretta Sanchez fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion.

That leaves what may be the most uniquely qualified, always overlooked convention site: Washington, D.C.

Perhaps because most candidates, presidential or otherwise, are running to “change” Washington, it is not seriously considered. Yet for every reason past choices have caused consternation, however, the District of Columbia makes sense.

Washington may be the city best suited to host a convention. It is bursting with hotels. A Travelocity search shows 300 hotels in the area, including major marquee hotels suitable for large political events. Its public transportation system is among the best in the nation, moving thousands of people from different locations with ease. The Verizon Center and convention center are both centrally located. There are three airports into which visitors may fly.

Moreover, for any ego-centric candidates, there are three major sports stadiums capable of hosting an acceptance speech!

Washington is logistically simple for the campaigns and party organizations. With a convention in Washington there is no need for an entire party committee to go through the trouble, and not insignificant expense, of temporarily relocating.

These same logistics benefit the media, who have news bureaus and political reporters, producers and bookers in Washington. Want to make a political reporter happy? Tell them that during the hustle and bustle of the convention they'll be able to see their kids at night. Want to make their bosses happy? Tell them how much money they will save by not relocating a significant portion of their news team. This is not to suggest such considerations could lead to better coverage, but ...

The biggest knock on Washington hosting a convention, aside from anything that includes the word “lobbyist,” is the brutal summer heat. While anyone making that argument has a legitimate point, summers in New Orleans and Houston, two previous convention sites, are not any cooler.

With the logistical and financial benefits, Washington would seem a natural choice for one of the parties to host their 2012 or 2016 convention. More importantly, with Virginia becoming a decidedly purple state, Northern Virginia, located squarely in the Washington media market, is more important than ever. - National Review Online

Washington will never be picked for a convention. Which party would want to be marked as such Washington insiders that they even had their convention there.

See previous posts on Atlanta and Dallas.

Atlanta looking at 2012 GOP gathering

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Atlanta joins Dallas and Indianapolis in showing possible interest in hosting the 2012 Republican Convention:

Georgia Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine wants to explore the possibility of an Atlanta bid for the 2012 Republican National Convention.

Speaking to Georgia delegates to the current convention, Oxendine said between Phillips Arena, the Georgia Dome and the World Congress Center, Atlanta has more than enough facilities. The city has also the hotel capacity to avoid what delegates here face, which is a 30- to 45-minute bus ride to the convention in St. Paul.

“Let’s see if we can go ahead and put a bid together and let’s take a serious look and weigh the options,” Oxendine said. “We can do a better one in Atlanta. Why don’t we take a look at doing that?”

Atlanta last hosted a national party convention in 1988 when Democrats gathered in the city. - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

(h/t Georgia Politics Unfiltered)

And so it begins...

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I am so psyched. (Yes it doesn't take much). We have our first news on 2012 site selection, and we've got two cities expressing interest! First up, Dallas:

As she walked the Pepsi Center grounds in the midst of the Democratic National Convention, Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia appeared convinced: Dallas should host this event in 2012.

"We'd be a perfect location," Dr. Garcia said. "Dallas has the capabilities to do the logistics, and we have the desire. We most definitely should go after a convention."

She's not alone.

Mayor Tom Leppert, for one, says he's also interested in pursuing a national convention four years from now, be it the Republican or Democratic version.

The city was home to the 1984 Republican National Convention. Dallas made the finalist lists of both parties for their 2008 conventions, but the city did not submit formal bids.
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The Dallas Cowboys' stadium in Arlington also will be open, giving convention organizers the option to conduct a large-scale event, similar to Barack Obama's nomination acceptance speech at Invesco Field at Mile High, in a massive, modern facility.

Of course, Dallas is also home to the Cotton Bowl in Fair Park. Recent renovations have pushed its seating capacity to beyond 90,000. - Dallas Morning News

First, kudos to DMN reporter Dave Levinthal, who also covered Dallas' aborted attempts for the 2008 conventions.

Dallas was never really enthusiastic about a 2008 bid, and ultimately said they weren't ready. There's also this matter of the three-week-long national Mary Kay seminar held every summer at the Dallas Convention Center, that seemed to be an issue for the 2008 bid.

Second, Indianapolis. Note that this article is from November, 2007:

Add the decision on whether to go after the 2012 GOP National Convention to the list of things the new administration of mayor-elect Greg Ballard will have to tackle. Indiana Republican Party Chairman Murray Clark said once the chaotic schedule of transition has eased a bit, he hopes to sit down with Ballard to talk about the convention.

"Without his blessing, I'm not interested. We wouldn't go for it," Clark said.

Indianapolis tried to lure the 2000 convention, but lost out to Philadelphia. It could cost up to $250,000 to put together a bid, but the payoff is an enormous event that brings 50,000 attendees.