GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel celebrated the party's "unanimous vote" to formally name Milwaukee, Wisconsin as the host of the 2024 Republican National Convention after the committee was left with just one city on its list of potential host cities.
"I am excited to announce that the RNC has voted unanimously to select Milwaukee as the host city for the 2024 Republican National Convention!" McDaniel announced over Twitter on Friday. "Milwaukee is a world-class city, and we are eager to see it shine in the spotlight come 2024."
The announcement comes just days after Nashville, Tennesee council members voted against a draft agreement to host the RNC on Tuesday, effectively removing the city from the long list before the Republican party.
Because the RNC had narrowed down the final two contenders to Nashville and Milwaukee, the vote from Nashville's Metro Council meant the annual convention would almost certainly be held in Wisconsin.
During its annual meeting, which was hosted in Chicago this year, all 168 RNC committee members voted to select Milwaukee as the host city for 2024—a year that will require the GOP to officially nominate the party's presidential pick. So far, no Republican candidates have officially announced their White House plans.
Although Nashville's 40-member council, which has a progressive majority, quashed the bill with a 22-10 vote, Milwaukee had already approved its draft resolution back in June. The council in Tennessee cited security risks and costs involved with hosting political conventions for the vote.
However, council member Robert Swope, who sponsored the bill, argued that there would also be "danger" in choosing not to take those risks.
"The real and present danger of not supporting this ordinance is the international damage that saying 'no' will do to Nashville's stellar, welcoming and inclusive reputation," he told the Tennessean ahead of Tuesday's vote.
On Friday, McDaniel said the GOP was especially excited to host the 2024 convention in Milwaukee because Wisconsin is a key battleground state.
"It is a purple state," she told Fox News. "It is exactly the voters that we are trying to bring into our party, and they have done such a great job. We're excited not only to elect our future president out of Milwaukee as a Republican, but we're excited to showcase a wonderful city and a wonderful state."
The RNC has chosen to keep its four early voting states to Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada for the 2024 election.
The Democratic National Committee has not yet selected its host city for its 2024 presidential nominating convention. The four cities that officially submitted their bids before the deadline are: Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; Houston, Texas and New York City, New York.
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Katherine Fung is a Newsweek reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. and world politics. ... Read more
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