• The Republican National Convention is still set to take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, from August 24 to 27.
• Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles told MSNBC on Sunday that the city agreed in 2018 to host the RNC, but “that is not the world today.”
• City Council Member Braxton Winston told Business Insider the convention posed a particular risk for the coronavirus, since participants would fly in from across the world.
• Charlotte is not expected to hit its coronavirus peak until mid-July, according to the Charlotte Observer.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles has voiced concerns about the city keeping its commitment to host an in-person Republican National Convention in August.

“We have a contract with the RNC to host this convention, but we also have a commitment to our community that we will keep them safe and well,” Lyles told MSNBC’s Ali Velshi on Sunday. “And that’s where we’re focused.”

The GOP gathering is currently slated for Charlotte’s Spectrum Centre from August 24 to 27.

In a statement on Saturday, the Republican National Committee said it is expecting nearly 50,000 attendees, including delegates and press.

Lyles told MSNBC the event needed to be evaluated in light of the current health crisis.

“Our community thought that we’d be talking about protests and security and keeping people safe that way,” she said. “And here we are fighting the unknown, COVID-19, and so we have to win that fight first.”

“We can’t go into this with just, ‘Well, we agreed to something in 2018 and we’re going to continue to do it,’ she added. “That is not the world today.”

In late April, Lyles said on ABC News’ “Pandemic: What You Need to Know” that she remained hopeful Charlotte could still safely host the convention.

In the MSNBC segment, Lyles said she would work with the local host committee and RNC 2020 CEO Marcia Lee Kelly to plan for “a number of scenarios.”

“Each one of those will include how to have something that’s safe,” she added. “We can’t do it if it’s not safe. And we’ve got to follow the directions of our scientists to do that.”

Charlotte voted 6-5 in 2018 in favour of hosting the 2020 GOP Convention. The pandemic has forced the cancelation of other large-scale August gatherings including Charlotte Pride, which drew more than 200,000 attendees in 2019.

The city’s contract does not include a “force majeure” provision, which would have allowed it to cancel the convention in the case of unforeseen circumstances like an epidemic, natural disaster, or terrorist attack.

At-Large Charlotte City Council Member Braxton Winston told Business Insider he was “grateful” to hear the mayor stress health and safety.

“We’re here to ensure the public safety,” Winston, a Democrat, said of the council’s role.

Before any consideration can be given to hosting a political convention, he added, there needs to be “regimented national testing, a contact tracing program, the ability to separate infected people from uninfected people, a vaccine [and] the ability to do activities in a socially-distanced manner.”

“We don’t really have any of those things done now,” Winston said.

The convention posed a particular threat, he said, because tens of thousands of participants were expected to fly in from all over the world.

Charlotte RNC host committee head John Lassiter is still optimistic about a successful convention.

“We bounced back after the great recession in 2008 and with this COVID-19 challenge, we will see that same strength,” Lassiter wrote in an op-ed in The Charlotte Observer on Saturday. “The Queen City will shine on the world stage due to the thousands of credentialed media that will share our story. This will allow us to highlight our community spirit, economic strength, and our ability to come together for a common purpose.”

The Republican National Committee and Charlotte RNC 2020 host committee did not respond to press inquiries.

FiveThirtyEight.com reports North Carolina has not hit its peak in coronavirus cases. Charlotte is not expected to hit its peak until mid-July, according to the Charlotte Observer.

The DNC in Milwaukee has been delayed until August 17, one week before the RNC is slated to occur. Former Vice President Joe Biden has gone on record saying a physical convention might not take place, NPR reported.

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