The Texas Republican convention in Houston during the coronavirus will be in person

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As the coronavirus pandemic engulfs Texas metropolitan areas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott has left the door open for massive indoor gatherings. And organizers are moving ahead with some important ones, including the upcoming Texas Republican Party convention in Houston.

Harris County, where Houston is located, has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the state, but the Texas Republican Party plans to press ahead with plans to hold a convention in person July 16-18 at the George R. Brown city. Convention Center.

“All systems are working, folks. This is happening,” Kyle Whatley, the party’s executive director, said Tuesday during a tele-town hall, noting that the convention program is already in print.

On Tuesday, Abbott gave local officials the power to restrict outdoor gatherings of more than 100 people, but did not mention indoor gatherings. The Texas Republican Party convention is expected to draw about 6,000 attendees, about half of what you would expect for such a convention in normal times, according to Whatley. Party The website calls its annual convention the “largest political gathering in the free world.”

Whatley said the records are “increasing exponentially” as the convention approaches.

David Lakey, the former commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, said he believes large indoor gatherings of more than 100 people are not recommended at this time.

“I think right now, I wouldn’t have a group of more than 100 people,” he said. “I think people should be very cautious when making, especially in the month of July, any plan for a big conference.”

The party does not plan to require masks at the convention, although President James Dickey acknowledged Tuesday that Harris County is currently under an order requiring companies to require customers to wear masks.

“The Republican Party does not consider itself a commercial entity, so they are not required to comply with the mask order,” said Melissa Arredondo, spokeswoman for the Harris County Judge’s office, Lina Hidalgo, who issued the order to mask.

That order expires Tuesday, and Dickey said the party “will review” the theme of the mask during another tele-town hall next month before the convention.

Abbott’s office did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Lakey, a former top state public health official, said the masks are effective in reducing the spread of the virus.

“If you have a convention where there are a lot of people inside, sitting close to each other, especially without masks, then no one should be surprised that there are people who will get infected in that environment,” he said.

Lakey added that outdoor settings are safer than indoor settings.

“When you are outdoors, you have ultraviolet light and you also have the wind that will disperse the respiratory drops,” he said. “And so, in general, people believe that being outside is less risky than being inside.”

Houston First Corporation, which operates the George R. Brown Convention Center, said it is legally bound to honor a contract with the Texas Republican Party that was signed before the pandemic began.

“HFC does not have the authority to require attendees to wear masks at the Republican State Convention, unless they are included in the original licensing agreement,” Carolyn Campbell, a spokeswoman for Houston First, wrote in a statement. “Since this agreement was issued before the pandemic, that provision was not included, therefore, any compliance with the new mask order would be the responsibility of the Republican State Convention.”

The party is making several adjustments to safely celebrate the convention. Dickey promised an “abundance” of hand sanitizer stations and said rooms will be cleaned between meetings. Whatley said the convention center has installed thermal scanners at its entrances to measure the temperature of attendees as they enter.

“Our decision to hold a convention in person comes as a direct result of wanting to protect the rights of our delegates as the foundation of our party, as well as leading the way in promoting and practicing our principle of personal responsibility,” said Dickey. he wrote in a statement.

Abhi Rahman, a spokesman for the Texas Democratic Party, said he “is not very happy” with the Republican party’s decision to proceed with a convention in person. The Texas Democratic Party convention took place entirely online in early June.

“His decision is completely puzzling, it is reckless, it is irresponsible,” he said. “It shows you that they haven’t taken this seriously since day one. Houston is one of the biggest coronavirus hot spots right now, and they want to go there, they want to hold a convention in person without requiring face masks, where they will put even more people and hospitality workers at risk. “

Rahman also criticized Abbott’s leadership, attributing the high rates of Texas coronavirus infection to the governor’s decision to reopen businesses quickly without implementing stricter public health measures.

“Our cases right now are out of control and all of this falls on Governor Abbott,” said Rahman. “It still won’t do a statewide mask mandate.”

Patrick Svitek contributed to this report.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of the Texas Democratic Party spokesperson, Abhi Rahman.