Dallas Loses Bid to Host 2016 GOP Convention

Dallas had the money and the size. But in the end, timing was everything. 

On Tuesday, the Republican National Committee announced that Cleveland had beaten out Dallas to host the 2016 Republican National Convention. The two cities were the last of eight originally competing to host the party’s presidential nominating convention.

The decision appeared to come down to timing. Cleveland was able to commit to a June 27 start date, while Dallas couldn’t go earlier than July 18. The Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau has said that the city wouldn’t be able to accommodate the convention at the same time as the NHL and NBA playoffs, if the Stars and Mavericks make it that far.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus has stressed the importance of hosting the convention earlier in the summer to give the party more time to rally around the presidential nominee. The 2010 convention, which was held in Tampa, Fla., took place at the end of August.

Dallas officials said they had already raised $46 million to help host the convention, compared to Cleveland’s $25 million. In the end, that wasn’t enough to convince the RNC to return to North Texas for the first time since 1984, when Ronald Reagan was nominated for a second term.