
Milwaukee has accomplished something rare: winning bids to host a major party convention during two presidential elections in a row. In 2020, they were supposed to host the Democratic National Convention, but the outbreak of COVID-19 scotched the event. Now, in 2024, Milwaukee residents are worried that the Republican National Convention, set to take place from July 15 to 18, will also be a disappointment, according to The Recombobulation Arena, a Milwaukee-based online publication.
Cities typically clamor for the privilege of hosting a party's convention, anticipating that the incoming crowd of politicos and journalists will have a positive economic impact. One Milwaukee-based business owner earlier posited that the RNC could infuse $200 million into the city's economy, a claim later touted by Republican National Committee officials as well. Now, less than a month before the RNC, business owners and officials say they are not seeing the economic promise in reality.