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Houston cancels in-person Texas GOP convention amid coronavirus epidemic

The fight over whether to move ahead with the event at the George R. Brown Convention Center has been brewing all week.

Updated at 3:42 p.m. to include the event’s cancellation.

AUSTIN -- Houston officials canceled the state GOP convention Wednesday over coronavirus concerns, a move that comes just a week before thousands of Texas Republicans were expected to arrive in the city.

An emotional Mayor Sylvester Turner said the deciding factor was frontline staff and the thought of his late mother, who had been a hotel maid.

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“I’m not going to abdicate my role as the mayor of this city to protect the health, safety and welfare of every single person, including the least of people,” Turner, a Democrat, said during a press conference.

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The Texas Republican Party is evaluating all legal remedies to fight the decision, Chairman James Dickey said.

“If Mayor Turner’s motivations were pure, he could have canceled the lease weeks ago,” Dickey said in a statement. “Instead, he waited until the eve of the Convention to inflict the greatest disruption.”

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A debate over whether to press ahead with an in-person convention has been brewing for days, as cases of the coronavirus continued to surge. On Wednesday, hospitalizations across Texas climbed to their highest level and a record 98 people died from COVID-19 statewide.

Public health officials and Turner had pushed for a virtual event, while Dickey pledged the in-person convention would go forward with extra safety measures.

Still, Gov. Greg Abbott, the party’s top elected official, indicated Tuesday he was still deciding whether to attend.

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Ultimately, Houston First Corporation, which oversees the George R. Brown Convention Center where the event was set to be held, wrote to the party Wednesday terminating the agreement.

The organization cited a “force majeure” clause as the reason, which it said includes “epidemics in the City of Houston.”

“Houston has experienced a significant increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases since Memorial Day Weekend, straining the availability of healthcare resources, and there is no indication that the current crisis will slow or reverse course in the coming weeks,” the letter from Houston First said.

GOP plans

The GOP has contingency plans to hold a virtual convention, but Dickey has said that is “not ideal.” He said Wednesday the convention will continue unimpeded, and if necessary, “using online technologies.”

Leadership voted last week to proceed with an in-person event.

Some delegates said abandoning the convention would amount to a betrayal of President Donald Trump, who has favored rallies during the coronavirus epidemic and is scheduled to accept the GOP re-nomination next month in a Florida arena. Others said the party’s work, which includes approving a platform and choosing a chair, is best carried out face-to-face.

At least 4,200 people had registered for the in-person convention that was scheduled to begin July 16, a smaller turnout than past state GOP conventions that have drawn at least 11,000 people.

Large gatherings have been blamed for spreading the virus. On Wednesday, a Tulsa public health official said President Trump’s campaign rally in the Oklahoma city last month “likely contributed” to a dramatic surge in new coronavirus cases.

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Hospitals in Houston are filled and the city has emerged as a national hot spot for COVID-19.

Abbott, who has fought to control the virus’s spread by closing bars and mandating masks, had not used his power to shut down the convention. But in a series of television interviews this week, he advocated strict safety protocols, which he said would be a deciding factor in his attendance.

“As for myself, as well as for everybody else, we will continue to see what the standards are that will be issued… by the state Republican Party to determine what the possibility will be for being able to attend,” he said on San Antonio’s KENS-TV on Tuesday.

In-person vs. virtual

The Texas Democratic Party held its convention virtually in June. Texas Republicans delayed their convention from May to July because of the epidemic. Leaders have bristled at an online option.

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“There is simply no substitute for in-person debate to be able to produce our result,” Dickey told The Dallas Morning News on Tuesday. “There is no more important electoral activity than literally electing the people who cast the votes for the president of the United States.”

Plans for an online convention include an encrypted voting feature, Dickey told delegates Tuesday.

Dallas GOP Chairman Rodney Anderson said he is “deeply disappointed” by Turner’s decision to cancel the convention, while allowing thousands to protest last month.

“I look forward to seeing what legal options the state party has available to fight this complete and absolute overreach by Mayor Turner,” he said.

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Dallas delegates had been split over whether to attend. Several said they were assured by the proposed safety steps, such as temperature checks and room cleanings after each use. Already, most Texans must wear face masks under Abbott’s most recent order.

The platform “will be voted on by the body plank by plank, line by line,” said Brian Marks, a precinct chair in Richardson. “You can’t do that the way that we do it virtually.”

But some, worried by the virus, planned to stay away.

“Now all Republicans can participate in a virtual convention without risking their health or the health of others,” said Rudy Oeftering, a precinct chair in Dallas.

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The Texas Democratic Party praised Turner and the Houston City Council.

“Republicans are lucky that Democratic and city leaders were willing to do the right thing, cancel this convention, and save them from themselves,” Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement.