Dems down to three possible 2020 convention host cities

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) will choose from just three cities vying to host its 2020 presidential nominating convention after one of the finalists dropped its bid over scheduling conflicts.

On Wednesday, the committee said it had narrowed its list of potential hosts to four: Denver, Houston, Miami Beach and Milwaukee.

But within hours, Denver had dropped its bid, citing scheduling conflicts that could not be resolved without causing major problems.

Denver’s decision to drop its bid was first reported by The Denver Post.

{mosads}Democrats want to host their convention July 13-16, 2020, a week before the beginning of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Denver officials had believed there was more flexibility with those dates, and they abandoned their bid once it became clear that Democrats were set on hosting their convention so early.

Party officials will begin site visits to the remaining three cities over the summer and into the fall before making a final selection.

Two of the three finalists have hosted major party conventions before. Houston last hosted Republicans in 1992, when President George H.W. Bush was renominated. And Miami Beach hosted both Democrats and Republicans in 1972.

Milwaukee is the lone outsider never to have hosted a major party — though it did host Socialist Party conventions several times, and the Green Party’s convention in 2004.

Democrats are expected to make their final decision in about a year, DNC spokesman Michael Tyler told The Hill last month.

Republicans have moved faster to lock down a host for their 2020 convention. But few cities submitted serious proposals to the Republican National Committee, a reflection that some cities are leery of the protests and disruption almost certain to greet President Trump’s likely renomination.

The GOP will decide between Charlotte, N.C., which hosted the Democratic convention in 2012, and Las Vegas, which has never hosted a political convention before.

—Updated at 3:07 p.m.