Twin Cities to Host 2008 GOP Convention

The Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., is shown in this Sept. 13, 2005, file photo, where the 2008 Republican National Convention will be held Sept. 1-4, party officials announced Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2006. By choosing the Twin Cities for 2008, the GOP will ensure plenty of news converge in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, all battleground states in the 2004 election and ones expected to be competitive in the next presidential race. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) (Jim Mone - AP)

"Our stereotype is that we're cold and liberal and Democratic, and we're still cold," said Steven Schier, a political scientist at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn.

In the 2004 general election, 38 percent of Minnesota voters identified themselves as Democrats, while 35 percent called themselves Republicans, according to exit poll data. Twenty-seven percent identified as independents or "something else."

With the convention, the GOP hopes to court voters in a region Republican and Democratic strategists alike say will play a critical role in winning the White House in 2008. The GOP held its last convention in New York City, a Democratic stronghold where GOP delegates nominated President Bush for a second term.

Democrats, who last met in Boston, plan to hold their convention Aug. 25-28, and will announce a location later this fall. A spokesman said 11 sites expressed interest in having the party's convention, but only four completed the proposals. New Orleans later withdrew its bid, leaving Denver, New York City and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

But Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak has said that because of timing and logistics, the Twin Cities can't host both conventions. The two conventions are scheduled for consecutive weeks.

Democrats said the competition for their convention now is between two cities.

"The DNC was thrilled to have three great American cities submit strong bids for the 2008 Democratic National Convention. We are looking forward to working with Denver and New York as we make our final decision," said Stacie Paxton, a Democratic party spokeswoman.

The Twin Cities are the two largest in the state with a combined population of more than 650,000, and the metropolitan region straddles the Mississippi River.

In Minnesota, the effort to woo a national political convention has been a bipartisan affair, with the two big-city mayors, both Democrats, joining forces with top Republicans. They argued that Minnesota is a critical part of an Upper Midwest region that combined offers 27 electoral votes.

The GOP convention will coincide with the Minnesota State Fair, and state officials have predicted a national political convention would boost the Twin Cities economy by about $150 million.

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Associated Press Writers Philip Elliott and Fred Frommer in Washington and Martiga Lohn in St. Paul, Minn., contributed to this report.

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Republican National Committee: http://www.rnc.org

Xcel Energy Center: http://www.xcelenergycenter.com