Trump Cancels GOP Convention In Florida, Citing Virus Concerns

WASHINGTON, DC — President Donald Trump on Thursday said he has instructed his staff to cancel all components of the Republican National Convention scheduled next month in Jacksonville, Florida.

Trump cited concerns about the recent "flare-up" in coronavirus cases as he made the announcement during his Thursday briefing from the White House.

“It’s a different world, and it will be for a little while," Trump said, explaining his decision. “To have a big convention is not the right time."

Despite the virus, the president had previously pushed ahead with the convention despite warnings from public health officials. The bulk of the event was moved from North Carolina to Florida after Trump insisted he wanted a full convention with 19,000 attendees and no social distancing or face covering requirements.

The Jacksonville events were scheduled to take place at the end of August.

Trump's formal renomination will move forward as planned in North Carolina, where a small subset of GOP delegates will gather in Charlotte for just four hours on Aug. 24.

Florida was slated to host four nights of programming and parties that Trump had hoped would be a "four-night infomercial" for his re-election, according to The Associated Press.

The decision to move the event to Florida came after Democratic leaders in North Carolina, where the Republican convention was originally planned, refused to meet demands for an event free of social distancing rules.

Prior to that cancellation, event organizers were in negotiations with state public health officials about possible accommodations for the convention, which was two years in the making, according to North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, a former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, lobbied to bring the event to his city after the RNC made it clear convention officials were open to moving the event, Politico reported. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, also supported the move.

Thursday's coronavirus briefing marked the second since Trump announced earlier this week that he would be resurrecting the sessions.

The move comes following weeks of public silence from the White House as Trump's approval rating plummeted and he struggles to turn the public's attention away from the economic devastation caused by the virus in the months leading up to the election.