MILWAUKEE, WI (WSAU) — The city of Milwaukee has officially emerged as the frontrunner to host the 2024 Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum.
The convention planning committee gave their endorsement to Milwaukee’s bid last Friday, saying that Wisconsin’s largest city already has a blueprint for the event thanks to the plans for the ’20 DNC, which became a mostly virtual event originating from the Milwaukee Convention Center.
Additionally, city leaders in Nashville have been hesitant to endorse plans to hold the event at Bridgestone Arena because of safety concerns. Some of those same concerns have also been expressed by Democratic leaders including State Senator Chris Larson. He said he’s concerned about welcoming people who advocated for violently overthrowing democracy, referring to the January 6th, 2021 attack on the U-S capitol.
But Milwaukee Mayor Caviler Johnson says he’s not concerned about any violence or protests, telling WISN’s UpFront program “we are a welcoming city, a city that has political consequence, and we can put on a large-scale event. I think those things have shone through and that’s why [we may] get selected to host the convention in 2024.”
National GOP leadership is expected to make their formal selection in the next four weeks.