Dem
47
GOP
53
Republicans are desperate to do something to generate some enthusiasm among their voters and get them to the polls in November. One plan is to hold a midterm national convention and hope that their voters watch it. Since they can't guarantee that the networks will cover it, people may have to watch it on some form of streaming, which will probably reduce the audience considerably. The location will probably be Dallas. This could be a good choice with a contentious Senate election and some competitive House races as well. The goal would be to give some House and Senate candidates in tight races a chance to show off their stuff. The most likely time is in September, just before early voting starts.
The Democrats considered also holding a convention but the DNC killed the plan for financial reasons. The DNC has $15 million in the bank and $17 million in debt. In contrast, the RNC has $102 million in the bank and no debt. It can afford to blow tens of millions on a convention.
The RNC convention won't be a real convention for several reasons. First, the attendees won't be delegates elected in primaries. They will be party regulars chosen by the state parties. Second, the convention has no legitimate purpose. In presidential years, the national convention picks the presidential and vice presidential nominees. This convention won't pick anyone or do anything. It will just be a long series of speeches by politicians the RNC wants to showcase. Given that the convention means nothing and will probably be viewed only by strong partisans who were going to vote anyway (and probably not so many of them), one can ask: "What's the point of it?" But with $102 million in the bank, the RNC doesn't mind throwing a few tens of millions away for a pointless party. It could be that the National Association of Balloon Manufacturers' big donation to the RNC did the trick. And, if nothing else, Kid Rock can use the work. (V)